The Lady Mustangs suffered their first loss of the season Monday, falling to Plainedge 16-4 .
Mineola started with the distinct disadvantage of having five starters benched for missing a team commitment and Plainedge was able to control most of the game.
“It was hard to cut them but it had to be done,” Mineola head coach Frank Massaro said, a decision made even more difficult because historically games between the Lady Mustangs and Red Devils are always close.
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“I even apologized to the other coach because we normally have such an intense game,” Massaro said. “It hurt to lose those starters.”
With an early score about 30 seconds in, Plainedge set a tone for the first half, taking their time and keeping pressure on Mineola goalie Katie Dul.
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After a second goal from Plainedge, midfielder Lacey Fater scored first for Mineola, with an assist by fellow midfielder Kayla Vesley. Plainedge answered quickly by adding a third goal.
Much of the action remained centered around the Mineola gnet, with the Red Devils racking up a total of 8 goals in the first half. Attacker Ashley Stavish struck back with one goal, making the score 8-2 at the half.
Plainedge won nearly every draw in the second half, scoring their ninth goal shortly after play resumed despite Mineola defense working harder to protect their net. Unfortunately for the Lady Mustangs, Plainedge still managed to score three more unanswered goals, leaving the score at 12-2.
Following a Mineola timeout, Plainedge scored again, keeping the Lady Mustangs off the board for several more minutes when midfielder Julie Falotico was able to answer, scoring Mineola’s third goal. Fater scored her second with the help of attacker Natalie Kain shortly thereafter.
A more aggressive Red Devils defense reacted to this with a more aggressive defense that only resulted in two yellow cards in quick succession and one more Mineola goal, this time from Stavish, with an assist by defender Hayley Ward. Plainedge fought back with another goal, making the score 14-6.
In the last minutes of the game, attacker Kelsey Napolitano took a nasty spill on the track surrounding the field and left the field to receive medical treatment. After the game, Massaro said Napolitano landed hard on her tailbone but should be fine with some ice and rest.
The team takes on the Lady Rams when they travel to Clarke High School for their next game this Saturday at 10 a.m.
1 2 F Plainedge Lady Red Devils 8 6 14 Mineola Lady Mustangs 2 46 Mineola Scoring Statistics Player Position Goals Assts Shots Lacey Fater Midfielder 2 0 4 Ashley Stavish Attacker 2 0 3 Julie Falotico Midfielder 1 1 2 Hayley Ward Defender 1 1 2 Kayla Vesley Midfielder
0 1 2 Kelsey Napolitano Attacker 0 1 1 Natalie Kain Attacker 0 1 0 Grace Paldino 0 0 2 Alicia Mercurio 0 0 1 Heather Gessner 0 0 2 Gabby Contileno 0 0 1 Erica Antonison 0 0 1 Teresa Ferreri 0 0 0 Emma Perez 0 0 0 Tina Basile 0 0 0 Kalie Medlock 0 0 0 Kerri Medlock 0 0 0 Nikki Vella 0 0 0 Mineola Goalkeeping Saves Katie Dul 14
