Alexander falls in Finals posted by Coach on 02-27-2005 06:27

Alexander faced off against Amherst in the finals of the U19 2nd session last night 2-1 despite playing a very solid all around game. Amherst proved to be the best team that Alexander has faced all winter long with very strong passing and solid defense in the back. Alexander had solid possession of the ball throughout the game but failed to finish their chances on goal and in the end it cost them.

Amherst scored midway through the first half on a well played cross and finish to make the score 1-0. Alexanders midfielders and forwards held the ball well through the midfield but really didn't have any quality looks on net in the first half. The defense was solid, doing a good job stepping to the ball throughout.

The 2nd half saw Alexander get off to a slow start and they would fall behind 2-0 because of it. An Amherst shot would get through the defense and hit the post. Alexander froze on the play and the rebound off the post came right back to an Amherst forward, who tucked it in the corner before Alexander reacted to the rebound. Amherst nearly made it 3-0 moments later as another shot went off the post as Alexander froze but the rebound was cleared away.

Alexander picked up the pace the final 15 minutes of the game and started to create chances. Amherst's goalie was up to the task stopping Missy on a breakaway with just over 10 minutes left. Amanda and Whitney both had breakaways of their own, both times beating the keeper but just missing the far post. With 6 minutes left in the game D finished off a rebound of a shot by someone (I didn't see who) to make the score 2-1. Alexander had a couple great looks to tie the game but couldn't get either to go in. Linz had a look at an open goal but missed over the top after Whitney and the goalie had collided in the box. Kim had a direct kick with just over a minute to go that glanced off the head of a Amherst defender and just went over the top.

As the clock ran out Alexander had a direct kick but couldn't get it off before time ran out. It was a well played game by both sides and very exciting to be a part of. The girls should be proud of how they played this session, they had an excellent record and went down fighting in the end playing some of their best soccer. I am very proud of all of you, great job.

1st star in the game goes to Kim, played all 50 minutes beyond the point of exhaustion. Came up with some huge stops and had some great direct kicks, Great game. 2nd star goes to Amanda, had some great runs off the ball, great control with the ball, and some excellent passing. 3rd star goes to Whit, good to see her back on the field for us, solid work in the middle of the field, great through passes, and some superior dribbling. Great games were also turned in by Cat and Ashley in the back, Jess, D, Julia, and Kayla in the mids, and Brit and Miss up top. Solid games were turned in by Chelsey in net, Alesha and Maranda in the back, and Lin up top.

Thanks to all the girls for coming out. It was a great session, awesome job.

Alexander 1 Attica 0 posted by Coach on 02-20-2005 09:22

Playoff time once again for the Alexander19 team. This time they would face off against Attica for a berth in the final game. Alexander came out passing the ball well, and outplayed Attica throughout much of the game.

Early on the passing attack was lead by Julia, Gretchen, Kayla, Duval, Britney, D, and Linz as they attacked the net with everything they had but didn't manage to put one in early. In the back, Miller, Ashley, Cat, Alesha, and Kim did a great job shutting down Attica's attack. Alexander was dominating possession and it was only a matter of time until they managed to get a goal. Midway through the first half Julia took a ball, beat 2 defenders on her own and ripped a shot in the lower left corner of the net for the 1-0 lead. D had nearly made it 1-0 earlier in the game, but was stopped on a rocket indirect kick by a sliding Attica keeper.

Alexander would play excellent defense for the rest of the half with Chelsey making some excellent saves in net to keep Attica scoreless.

The 2nd half would see Alexander intially come out strong and really put additional pressure on the Attica net. The attica keeper was up to the task keeping Alexander shots out of the net. Chelsey would come up huge several times in the 2nd half making 7 of her 10 saves in the 2nd half to keep Attica off the scoreboard. D, Amanda, and Britney all had excellent chances to ice the game in the 2nd half but none of the shots found the net.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Attica had a couple great chances to score, but missed the net on every shot and the final horn blew with the score 1-0.

Alexander will face off against unbeaten Amherst in the finals next Saturday at 7:15 as they look to defend their session I title.

1st star in the game goes to Chelsey, amazing game in net, 10 saves, stopped 3 breakaways in the game to shutout Attica in a huge game. 2nd star goes to Julia, excellent game in the center, picked up the game winning goal. 3rd star goes to Ashley, did a great job marking up in the back, stepped to the ball well, very nice all around game. Great games were also turned in by Miller and Alesha in the back, Gretchen and Kayla in the mids, and Brit, D, and Amanda up top. Great job girls.

Alexander 3 South Buffalo 1 posted by Coach on 02-13-2005 06:53

Alexander moved into 2nd place in the standings going into the playoffs with a win over South Buffalo 3-1 Saturday night. Alexander played great possession soccer throughout the game. Kim put Alexander up 1-0 with a great direct kick just over 10 minutes into the game. With one second left in the 1st half Britney slid a pass to Julia who buried it in the net just before the horn to make the score 2-0. The first half saw some great play up top from Amanda, Britney, and Rachel as all 3 had some great runs and some nice shots. Julia, D, Gretchen, Kayla, and Jess all worked hard in the midfield, marked well and had some nice passing to set up the offense. In the back, Kim, Cat, Ashley, Maranda, and Alesha all played very well in pitching the first half shutout while Chelsey made 4 saves.

The 2nd half saw Alexander relax a little early on and it cost them as South Buffalo banged in a goal on a corner kick to make the score 2-1. Alexander continued to move the ball well but was unable to find the back of the net. Schwab, Brit, and Amanda all had some nice looks on net, but none managed to put one home to lock the game up.

With just over 5 minutes left in the game a ball came across that Julia got her foot to but didn't get enough to put it on net. The ball came to D who fired it in the far corner to make the score 3-1. The defense played well again allowing very few shots. Chelsey made 4 saves in the 2nd half (8 total) to pick up the win between the pipes, her 4th of the session.

Alexander enters the playoffs and will likely face off against the Royals, the game that was cancelled because of snow a few weeks ago, in the first round. The game is scheduled for 8:15 next Saturday.

1st star in the game went to D, solid game in all 3 midfield positions, picked up the goal that locked the game up, had great passing all game long, and solid defense. 2nd star goes to Gretchen, great game on the outside, good passing, great marking, and had a couple nice shots. 3rd star goes to Kim, solid game in the back, picked up the first goal on a great direct kick early on. Great games were also turned in by Chelsey in net, Cat and Ashely in the back, Julia and Kayla in the mids, and Brit up top. Great game girls.

Alexander 3 Attica 1 posted by Coach on 02-06-2005 06:53

Alexander looked to make up ground on the two teams ahead of them in the standings with a win as the two teams in front of them tied leaving the door open for Alexander to close the gap in the standings. Alexander came out hot, dominated from the beginning and came away with a solid 3-1 win over Attica.

Alexander's passing was superb throughout the first half with Whit, Gretchen, Duval, and Jess all moving the ball well in the midfield and getting some good looks on net. Up top D, Brit, and Amanda all had great runs off the ball and had excellent shots on net. Just over 8 minutes into the game Alexander would break through as Whit took a ball and dribbled right up the middle of the field beating 3 Attica players and burying it in the corner for the 1-0 lead. Just under 10 minutes later Kim took an indirect kick that came off a defender to Amanda, who set a shot on goal that was deflected to Whit who spun and buried it into the net for the 2-0 lead. Kim, Cat, Ashley, and Kayla did a great job in the back keeping Attica away from the net, and when they did get a s hot off Chelsey was great in the net keeping them off the board.

The 2nd half saw Alexander relax a little too much with the 2 goal lead and Attica outplayed them for the first 7 minutes of the 2nd half. Attica picked up a goal to make it 2-1. Alexander narrowly avoided Attica tieing it up when a shot just missed the far post after it snuck through the defense. After that point Alexander took back over and started getting back to their offense moving the ball around with solid possession. With about 6 minutes left in the game Alexander would put the insurance goal in the net when Amanda sent a shot in that was saved and Brit poked it in with her head to make the score 3-1. Chelsey made a couple great saves in the 2nd half to keep Alexander on top of the score board.

With the win, Alexander moves within one point of the lead in the division and can move into first next week with a win and a little help.

1st star goes to Whit, 2 goals, great possession in the middle of the field, good defense in the middle, excellent all around game. 2nd star goes to Kim, awesome game in the back, great defensive pressure, stepped to the ball well, excellent passing out of the back. 3rd star goes to Gretchen, excellent game at outside mid, moved the ball well, solid defense, excellent passing, good field vision. Great games were also turned in by Chelsey in net, Ashley and Cat in the back, and Brit and Amanda up top. Nice job ladies.

Alexander 6 Immaculata 1 posted by Coach on 01-30-2005 07:07

Alexander played a very good overall game and came away with a big 6-1 win against Immaculata Saturday night. Alexander came out early moving the ball around the field and working to get on the board early. Brit took a pass from Amanda and put a shot on net that the keeper couldn't handle and it found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead. Whit, D, and Amanda would all have good shots on net that didn't find the back. Duval just missed putting home a corner kick from directly in front of the net.

Kim, Ashley, Kayla, and Duval did a nice job in the back holding Immaculata to just a few shots, all of which were snapped up by Chelsey to keep the score 1-0 at halftime.

The 2nd half saw our offense go to work. Whit took the ball herself twice and dribbled through the defense and drilled home shots to make the score 3-0. D would take a pass from Whit and put it in the near corner with her left foot to make the score 4-0.

Immaculata would get their lone goal of the game on a nice individual play by their best forward beating the defense and Chelsey in the near side of the net. 4-1 is as close as they would get. D would take a pass from Amanda and smoke it in the near corner of the net to make it 5-1. Just before the final horn, Kayla would take a pass from Brit and bang it in off the post to make the final score 6-1.

The defense played well in the back, with Kim, Kayla, Ashley, and Jess all working together to limit Immacualata to very few shots.

It was a very well played all around game as Alexander moved the ball well and finished a good portion of their opportunities.

1st star goes to Brit, had a goal and 2 assists and made some great runs off the ball. 2nd star goes to Whit, had some excellent passing and finished off 2 great goals. 3rd star goes to D, worked the ball around the field well and also finished off 2 great goals. Excellent performances were also turned in by Chelsey in net, Kim, Kayla, and Ashley in the back, Jess, Duval, and Gretchen in the mids, and Amanda up top. Great job girls.

Alexander 1 South Buffalo 0 posted by Coach on 01-09-2005 09:58

Alexander opened the second session with a well played game and a well deserved the win. Alexander played solid possession offense and great defense throughout the game. Julia, Ashley, Kayla, Duval, Jess and Maranda all did a great job in the midfield moving the ball around the field and feeding it foward to the ladies up top. Kim, Alesha, Miller, Maranda, Ashley, and Kayla all did a very good job in the back limiting South Buffalo's chances on net. In net Chelsey had her best indoor game of the year making 10 stops including a couple point blank shots to keep the shutout alive.

In the 2nd half with Alexander struggling to find the net the fowards went to work with D, Lin, and Court all working hard up top to create some shots. But the goal would come off an indirect kick play to win the game. Julia touched the ball, Kim shot it into the wall. Duval charged over to pick up the lose ball and put it in, but just before she got it Kim came sliding in and punched it into the goal to give the 1-0 lead. From there Alexander made the lead stand up and won their opening game of the session.

1st star in the game went to Chelsey who played a spectacular game in net picking up 10 saves and the shutout. 2nd star went to Kim, who played a very nice game in the back and picked up the goal to win the game. 3rd star went to Duval, great game on the outside, hit the cross bar with a shot, and had some great passing all game long. Solid games were also turned in by Kayla and Ashley in the mids and defense, and Miller in the back. Excellent all around game.

Games Start This Weekend posted by Coach on 01-06-2005 07:18

Good Luck Girls!