Scoring five goals in the first half alone, the Andover Girls Varsity Soccer used quick passing and a ferocious attack to beat a skilled Holderness team 6-0 this past Wednesday, in Andover’s biggest blowout of the season. Though defensive play was impressive the determined offensive was relentless, carrying the team to its victory. Just 15 minutes into the game, Emily Little ’09 received the ball around midfield and struck a well placed through-ball to Co-Captain Jenna Castellot ’08, who was making a brilliant run behind the Holderness defenders. Castellot then had a one-on-one opportunity with the Holderness goalkeeper in which she cleanly put the ball in the goal to complete the play. Keeping a strong momentum, the team scored four more goals in the first half. Next, Little ’09 once again received the ball and proceeded to dribble through multiple Holderness defenders. Ending up on the goal line, she placed a slow roller across the mouth of the goal which Shannon Neschke ’08 tapped into the net to make the score 2-0. Andover’s third goal of the day came when Co-Captain Dana Feeny ’08 dribbled into the opposing penalty area and passed the ball to Emily Little ’09, who was waiting at the top of the 18 to take a shot. Little took advantage of this perfectly set-up opportunity and ripped a shot into the corner of the net. A fourth goal was set up once again by Co-Captain Feeny ’08. Feeny was dribbling down the sideline when she saw a wide- open Autumn Jordan ’10 on the top of the 18. She quickly passed the ball to Jordan, who buried the ball in the back of the net with a blistering shot to the top corner of the net. Set up by Co-Captain Jenna Castellot ’08, the last goal of the half was made by Jade Isis-Lefebvre ’08. Castellot gave a perfectly placed through-ball in the air to Isis-Lefebvre, who beat out several defenders to the ball. Isis-Lefebvre then proceeded to dribble and slot the ball pass the helpless Holderness goalie to make the score 5-0 with Andover in the lead. The end of the first half could not have come sooner for Holderness, caught off guard by Andover’s relentless attack and tenacious defense. Holderness seemed to find its footing in the second half, only letting PA score one goal. Scored by Katie Michaelson ’08, the ball was dribbled down the sideline and taken inside using a fabulous cut back to get through a Holderness defender. Once she was near enough to the goal, Michaelson ’08 tried to use the cut back again, but this time it hit off of the legs of a scrambling Holderness defender and trickled into the goal. Despite Holderness strengthening its defense, it was unable to get through to score a goal on Andover. With three shutout wins in a row under their belts, the girls now look ahead to the annual rivalry match versus Exeter this Saturday. Co-Captain Castellot said, “The year I came to Andover as a Lower, we lost to Exeter, and last year we tied them. So it would be nice to cap off all of the Senior’s Andover careers with a win this year.” Castellot continued, “The team has been thinking about this game for a while now, and we feel like we are prepared.” Exeter’s team currently holds a 7-4-2 record, and Andover hopes to end its regular season on a winning note.
