The Cabrini women’s soccer team kicked off the 2008 season with its annual soccer festival this past weekend at the Edith Robb Dixon field.
The Cavs took on the Blue Jays of Saint Joseph’s College from Connecticut in its first contest and ran away with win No. 1 of the season. Their two goals in the final 15 minutes of the tug-of-war match handed them the win. Junior Heather Thompson iced the game off a Sabina DeGisi assist at the 85:54 mark.
Despite Saint Joseph’s stingy defense, DeGisi slipped the ball past three defenders to find Thompson for the game winner.
Freshman Kara Hinklemon tied up the game at one at the 75:23 mark on a left foot shot 15 yards out. The rookie ended the game with her first career goal, while leading the Cavaliers with five shots on goal. Sabina DeGisi, junior English and communication major, said, “The freshmen came right off the bench and made an impact. This gave the team confidence that we have depth and support.” And that they do. During the tournament, the newcomers showed that they have what it takes to compete at this level.
The contest went scoreless until Saint Joe’s rookie Krista Watts got one past Gianna Poretta, sophomore goalkeeper, with just minutes until halftime. Poretta ended the game with five stopped shots. The Cavs defense limited the Jays to just seven total shots.
After Hinklemon’s game-tying score, Saint Joe’s almost put one in, but Poretta denied any hope with a highlight-reel save. Blue Jay Rookie Katrina Maki led the team with three shots on goal.
The Lady Cavaliers rolled into the Cabrini College Soccer Festival finals with a 2-1 win to take on Dickinson College, who pulled one out against Widener University in a shootout.
In a disappointing championship game, DeGisi was the lone Cav to find the back of the net. The women went on to lose 4-1. “The first half, we played stronger than the second. In the second half, we weren’t clearing the ball out of our end and fatigue set in,” DeGisi said.
Dana Conroy of Dickinson kicked off the scoring 27 minutes into the first half, followed by DeGisi’s game-tying goal from the left box. At the half, the score was knotted at 1-1. In the second half, the Dickinson Red Devils went on 3-0 scoring run to win the game.
The Red Devils experienced a 30-minute scoring drought until Rachel Henry ended it at the 59-minute mark, followed by two more goals by Genevieve Olson and Sarah Casey.
Poretta ended the game with seven saves, while Dickinson goalie matched that also ending with seven. DeGisi had a team-high five shots on goal while Hinkelmon ended with three. The Red Devils beat the Cavs on corner kicks, outing them 14-5.
“I believe that we are better than last year with our balance and the new look of our conference,” DeGisi said. “We will contend for the Colonial States Athletic Association Championship (CSAC). If we take what we learned about ourselves and the team in Brazil and in preseason and put it on the field, there is no way we won’t have a shot at bringing the championship home.”
