John Jay Fights Hard in 3-2 Loss to Pleasantville

Photos at end of article

After opening the season with a pair of wins, John Jay was home on Monday September 8, and they were swinging for a triple. But a miscue in the very early going set the tone and picked off the prospect for three in a row.

Opening with the ball, the Wolves kicked back into their own zone, and trying to move upfield, a Pleasantville foot got on the ball. Up for grabs above the crease, Marc Fein lost the race to Danny McInerny, and he put the ball in the empty net only 19 seconds into the game. All the more painful since John Jay fought back from a 2-0 deficit and came up a goal short in a 3-2 defeat.

No apologies from the Panthers, the visitors kept up the pressure. Nicholas Tassier and Stephen O’Leary both rocketed balls through the crease, and at 32:10, O’Leary was denied at the last moment by Alejandro Pineda in front of the goal.

Undeterred, McInerny muscled John Jay at midfield for another near miss. He broke free, and his lead pass to Garvin Kayizzi rolled a little too long with 28 minutes left.

Back the other way, Finn Fothergill finally got John Jay in the game. He juked his way into space on the left, but his shot traveled wide right at 27:15.

In response, Pleasantville played the long game. Long pass to the lengthy legs of Kayizzi in the corner, and the wing put another shot on goal.

All John Jay could do was chase and deflect, but with 14 minutes remaining, the John Jay crowd did get to cheer a dance number between Sagi Ohana and Dennis Galvan. Ohana took a pass from midfield, made a touch pass right over to Galvan, and he led it ahead for Ohana. Unfortunately there was still too much traffic in the way, and a chance did not materialize.

The other end was another matter. Trying to clear the zone, John Jay surrendered the ball to Jonah Aghen in front of the goal, and he kicked it past Fein for a 2-0 lead.

In at 10:01, the John Jay defense did contain the damage for the rest of the half. Will Green broke up two Pleasantville advances in the zone, and Pineda added another to send the Wolves into the second with a fighting chance.

The defense didn’t rest either. A Pleasantville rush had Fein coming out to meet with a deflection, and a loose ball had nothing but net in front. On point, Pineda raced over and cleared the ball at 36:35.

The offense then rewarded the defense. Off a throw-in and surrounded by a sea of white, Alex Bond surfed the goal line, and without an angle in sight, he was able to beat Joe Pecararo in goal.

At 35:10, the 2-1 game still didn’t have Pleasantville missing a beat. The Panthers put up a couple of headers on corner kicks, and Fein looked like a sitting duck when Aghen caught McInerny streaking down the field.

The John Jay goalie came all the way out at the 30 minute mark, and McInerny only needed to maneuver past for an easy goal. Instead, Fein got a foot on the advance, and the lead remained one.

Not for long and long it was. Kayizzi tracked another into the corner, and with not much room, he was able to connect with Aghen. The net wide open, the center kicked away, and the lead was two with 24:33 remaining.

So not looking good, the John Jay defense still kept up, and the good work allowed the offense to put a fright into their guests. Taking a pass from across the field, Bond controlled on the sideline, took his time and hooked a ball into Galvan. 10 yards out, Galvan settled, and with the defense converging, he swung his leg around to make it a 3-2 game.

7:15 remaining, Bond and Galvan gave it one more go. Bond lofted from the sideline with four minutes to go, and Galvan went heads up with the Pleasantville goalie. Colliding, Pecararo took the brunt and the ball, and John Jay had to settle for a hard fought loss.