LYNN — With the regular season quickly drawing to a close, the St. Mary’s girls soccer team’s looking to put the final tweaks in place as the Spartans gear up for a postseason run. St. Mary’s sealed its Division 4 North tournament bid two weekends ago and the focus since then has been improving its seeding while competing against tournament-caliber teams.
Wednesday afternoon’s non-conference game against Latin Academy was a step in the right direction for the Spartans, who walked away with a 3-0 shutout win at Manning Field. But, said Spartans coach Jim Foley, they were tested.
“They tested us,” Foley said. “We started off a little slow. Last week we lost two games on the road. It was good to be home. They provided us with a challenge. Once we got going we started passing the ball around and we did what we needed to do.”
Although the Spartans didn’t score often, they scored at key moments. Junior forward Kayla Demers, sophomore midfielder Susannah Cornell and senior midfielder Jenna Foley each scored one goal. Foley said senior defender Joslyn Deschenes, junior midfielder Katie O’Neill and senior midfielder Sherly Feliz also played well in the win.
Demers, St. Mary’s leading scorer, gave the Spartans exactly what they were looking for when she fired in the game’s first goal. Down 1-0, Latin Academy didn’t change its game plan. The Dragons kept pace with St. Mary’s for the next 30 minutes in a back-and-forth defensive battle. Needing a goal to sway the momentum back in St. Mary’s favor, Cornell came through when she fired a shot into the back of the net from 15 yards out. Latin Academy goalie Fiona Mannion initially stepped out of her post but the ball sailed over her leap and into the net for the 2-0 Spartans lead. St. Mary’s led 2-0 at halftime.
“Anytime you can go up on a team that puts them on their heels,” Foley said. “I think after we didn’t score much over the last two games, you get Kayla and Susannah going- that sets the tone and the pace for the rest of us.”
The Dragons couldn’t get much movement toward St. Mary’s end of the field and the Spartans’ two-goal lead stood tall through the early minutes of the second half. St. Mary’s sent multiple shots Mannion’s way, but the junior goaltender brought forth her best effort to keep the Dragons within striking distance.
“(Mannion) had a good game,” Foley said. “We put some shots there and she made some plays on them. We could’ve finished a little bit more but she made some good plays. We had some great shots that she made good plays on. If she didn’t, we probably would’ve cashed in on those.”
Foley’s goal with 15:06 remaining in the game stretched the Spartans’ lead to 3-0 and put the game out of Latin Academy’s reach.
The Spartans (10-6-1) play their final game of the regular season next Monday afternoon (3:45) when they host Lowell Catholic for St. Mary’s annual senior night.
“We’re trying to end the season on a good note,” Foley said. “We’re hoping for a home game (in the state tournament). This time of the year, you’re thinking about seeding. You can’t worry about what anybody else is doing, you’re hoping to play at home. That’s our goal. We’ll try to get another win and hopefully get a home game in the tournament.”
