John Jay Ready for Rye Rematch in Section One Final

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Earlier in the season, John Jay traveled to Rye and lost 10-4 to the section one perennial powerhouse. So the postseason always on the horizon, the Wolves haven’t forgotten and the entire pack has been wagging for a rematch “We’ve been looking forward to it all season,” said Andrew Kiefer. Even so, fifth seeded Hen Hud stood in the way, but the May 25 semifinal match up at Contest Field didn’t have the home crowd doubting for very long.

After Dom Savastano won the draw and Jay set up, Kyle Petschek received the ball on the thirty and dumped right to Kiefer. No reason to wait, the midfielder went sidearm and began an eight goal run that led to a 13-6 victory.

The first goal in, John Jay kept the pressure on, but Aiden Mazzoni put the home team on pause. He made several tough saves, and the offense looked like they might have their hands full.

Of course, John Jay had a goalie too, and Blake O’Callaghan assured the reverse. Dean Hiltsley put a two step on Petschek at 6:30, and a lane to the goal opened up. The midfielder shot from ten feet away, and the Wolf nonchalantly gave the Sailor nothing but net.

Secure in the freshman’s catcher, John Jay went on the move, but more good pass work didn’t yield the expected results. Galea hit Brendan Corelli right out front, and Mazzoni turned away another chance.

Unfortunately, the Hen Hud defense threw away the possession, and John Jay was now primed to steamroll. Kiefer flipped back to Luca Duva, and he whizzed the second goal past Mazzoni at 5:32.

His 100th career point, Kiefer didn’t have long in the spotlight. Another draw to Savastano, Galea quarterbacked the play from behind the net and hit Luca Duva on the left. In space, the junior went sidearm, and John Jay had a 3-0 lead.

Only 19 seconds passing, John Jay’s fourth goal had O’Callaghan providing the impetus. Caught out of the goal, the John Jay net minder raced back as Dean Pastolove had an empty net in his sights. The Sailor shot, and O’Callaghan got a stick on to deny.

The defense then forced a turnover, and Petschek made Hen Hud pay. He took a pass from DiChiara at the 25, and after splitting through two defenders, the senior extended the lead to four at 3:11 of the first.

A minute later he was at it again. Corelli threw a high pass from behind the goal and Petschek rose to the occasion. The middie climbed the ladder, and Petschek’s shot windmilled in the same motion as his return to Earth.

Now 5-0, the first period intermission only prolonged the inevitable, and O’Callaghan was the first to dole the fate. From the 30, Hiltsley hit James McManus with a step to the goal, and O’Callaghan still was able to gobble up the underhand whirlwind.

But John Jay was far from full, and Duva placed his order. He began his rush from the 30, and with three defenders draping him, the Wolf dropped the curtain for a 6-0 lead at 7:30.

Kiefer added goal seven at 1:55, and 53 seconds into the third, Petschek took Kiefer’s feed to mostly tell the tale. A pretty easy victory, credit belonged in part to a tough schedule against the likes of Manhassett and Wilton. “We are battle tested,” said Kiefer. “We came out of those games with some losses. But we developed as a team, and it shows in the games when we need it to count.”

Tuesday at Yorktown definitely qualifies, and part two against second seeded Rye has both teams colliding on the upswing, according to Kiefer “We’ve gotten better, and they’ve gotten better. So we’ll see,” he concluded.