Little Red School House
and Elisabeth Irwin High School

A Pre-K-12 Progressive Education

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Seniors Get Deserving Send Off As LREI Wins ISAL Regular Season At Home

J.Demster

In the last game of the 2019 regular season LREI faced Dwight at home knowing first place in the ISAL was on the line. After a thumping header put them in the lead in the 13th minute the Knights went on to win the game and the league with one of their best performances of the year.

It was certainly an afternoon to remember for the Knights. Prior to this game Dwight were 3-1 with the games to catch LREI on points. They were in third place behind 3-1 Leman, who had already been defeated by LREI earlier this season. The best road to a NYSAIS bid and a #1 seed for the Knights ran straight through Dwight.

Right from kickoff the team played as if they knew the stakes. The central midfield trio of Olivia Roederer, Sarah Katz and Leah Maathey established their presence. Smart positioning and tough tackling by Maathey and Katz kept the ball in the Dwight end. Anything that did get by them was met by centerbacks Jane Olsen and Charlotte Peyser, who often won the ball and then coolly played into the midfield trio to start new possessions. Dwight’s efforts to use direct central play over the top never found its mark. There was a period late in the first half where they found some opportunities down their right side, but they never came to much.

The starting front three of Josie Parks, Cassidy Moskowitz and Mia Schulte were able to spread the field and advance forward, quickly putting pressure on the Dwight defense. They won several corners, one of which Peyser met with a header 13 minutes in to give LREI the advantage. The 1-0 scoreline held until halftime, with the Knights pressing the entire way.

It was in the second half that LREI broke the game open. It all got started when Cassidy Moskowitz dropped deep from her center forward spot to pick up the ball and turn to attack. She moved aggressively but patiently enough to allow the wing play to develop. She slipped a nice pass that put Schulte through, though the winger still had plenty to do to beat her marker, hold off the challenge of the centerback and finish at the near post. It was a great piece of work and an important goal.

At 2-0 the Knights looked pretty comfortable in the game. Dwight would get a few opportunities in a decent period of play, but the back four played very well, including one big moment for fullback Ana Ziebarth who chased down a winger and stripped her of the ball deep inthe LREI penalty box. And goalkeeper Sofia Sharp came up with several very nice saves to keep the Dwight off the board for the day. Moskowitz, after getting the assist before, would score her own goal off of a great ball out of the back from Olsen. It hit the forward on the run and she would sidestep the keeper to finish neatly. She also got the assist on the final goal, though Leah Maathey still had plenty to do after recieving the ball at the top of the Dwight box. She weaved two players and unleashed a shot for her second goal of the season.

The win means that LREI has captured the regular season ISAL championship, the NYSAIS tournament bid from the league and the #1 seed in next week’s league playoffs. The semifinals will be held on Tuesday, the 22nd.

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