Fenwick soccer stopped in overtime

LYNN ?As Fenwick girls soccer coach Karen Guillemette said succinctly afterward, “that’s overtime. You never know how it’s going to end.”It didn’t end well for the Crusaders, as they fell to Belmont in the first overtime of the Division 2 North semifinal game, 2-1, to set up a sectional final Sunday (1) at Manning Field.The game-winning goal was one of those quirky kinds of plays that can often end a game. At the eighth minute of the overtime, the ball squirted between two Fenwick defenders to Belmont co-captain Marissa Russo, who had crept in behind them (she was on her own side of the field, so she was on-side).Russo had a clean breakaway from there to keeper Becca Graves, who who stayed on her line until she broke for Russo with the intention of taking her out at the top of the area. However, Graves, Russo and another Fenwick defender all collided at the top of the area and all fell to the ground. Belmont’s Emma Teach, who was trailing the play, got control of the rolling ball and put it into the empty net for the game-winner.”Russo has been doing that all year and with the two captains on the bench ,she stepped up her game,” Belmont coach Paul Graham said (during the second half, two of Belmont’s four captains – Katie O’Brien and Laura Thurber) were injured and could not return to the game).”Belmont opened the scoring in the 25th minute. Kara Fischer put a through ball on the left wing from just outside the area to Teach, who was on the far side of the goal on the edge of the six-yard line. She beat Graves to the high right corner.The Crusaders pulled even at 68th minute. Fenwick was in alone and the shot from 10 yards out was tipped over the crossbar by Belmontkeeper, Maria-Alice Manetas. The ensuing corner kick taken from the left side by Fenwick’s Becky Mercurio found the head of Sara Previte, who found a spot behind the keeper and she put it into the net. It was the first goal against Belmont in the tournament.The defenders – Maura Doyle, Alicia Villett, and Brittany Dolan – played exceptionally well in shutting down Belmont, and forcing the overtime, Guillemette said.