PEABODY ― It was an intense matchup between the St. Mary’s and Bishop Fenwick girls soccer teams on Monday evening, and it was the Crusaders who came away on top of the rivalry matchup with a 5-0 win at Donaldson Stadium.
For the first five minutes of the match, Bishop Fenwick dominated possession. The Crusaders played with a quick tempo and were able to get in and behind the Spartans defenders.
The Crusaders also found some success on the counterattack transitioning quite quickly.
St. Mary’s sophomore goalkeeper Kylie Kennison made some impressive saves, including one on the goal line where she barely stopped the ball from going in the net midway through the first half.
St. Mary’s got its first real chance of the night 15 minutes into the match, but Fenwick goalkeeper and captain Claudia Keith was able to make a save off of a corner kick. The Spartans defenders were tested throughout the first half but were able to stay firm and mitigate the scoring for most of it.
Spartans head coach Jim Foley talked about the effort of his defenders after the match.
“I think the defense played great (and) I think we have a great goalie, too,” Foley said. We just made a couple of mistakes. So the shots that they scored off of were good plays, but we got to play better on defense.
“We held them 1-0 (in the first half) and even the first goal was a mistake, but they are a good team and when we make mistakes they score on them.”
The Crusaders tallied their first goal 22 minutes into the match, courtesy of junior Ally Mitchell. The forward lofted a beautiful shot over Kennison, who was left helpless as the ball floated into the net.
The goal was the result of Fenwick’s many direct balls on the right flank. The Crusaders were able to use this as a method to get behind their opponents and eventually get on the scoreboard.
The second half began the same as the first, as Fenwick continued to put St. Mary’s on the back foot. The Crusaders continued to distribute the ball well as they managed to get some scoring chances in the first 10 minutes.
Fenwick would eventually find the back of the net once again 17 minutes into the second half, as forward Ella Demakis lofted her shot over Kennison.
St. Mary’s got one of its best chances of the night when seventh grader Bella Owumi rocketed a shot on net but it was stopped by Keith.
Fenwick gained its third goal in controversial fashion, as the goal scorer appeared to be nearly 10 yards offside ― but the referees on the other side of the field thought otherwise. A fan making his opinion on the call known ended up being ejected from the match.
The Crusaders eventually made it a 4-0 game after Isabella DelVecchio blasted a low shot into the net. With 8 minutes left in the match, it became a 5-0 deficit for the Spartans.
St. Mary’s (3-2-1) travels to Arlington Catholic Friday (4).
Bishop Fenwick (2-0-2) hosts Austin Prep Wednesday (4).
