Somers Chases the Ghosts Away in Upset Victory over John Jay

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Over the last several seasons, John Jay and Somers have met in some pretty big games, and the Wolves always seem to have the Tuskers’ number. So a 2-1 first period lead for the home team looked like business as usual. But the determined, resolve of this group of girls had no interest in a history lesson.

Somers scored the next four goals, and while Sydney Ingraham’s domination in the circle paved the way for the 9-5 semifinal victory, the senior’s thoughts were with her teammates. “This win is so special for the seniors, and everyone who’s lost to John Jay in the last four years,” Ingraham extolled.

Of course, the game began in character when John Jay drew a penalty. Amelia Inglis deferred the shot, passed right to Finja Degl, and she dumped inside to Jordan Kauftheil. The Wolf made a little space and went downhill past Emma Donaldson.

In at 9:36, the next time down for John Jay put the foreshadowing on the wall. “We focused on not fouling inside the eight and making sure we were playing defense between there and the 12,” said Coach Deb Daly.

That’s exactly how the sequence went. Somers did initially foul far away from the crease, and any incursion forward was met with a collapsing wall of Tuskers. John Jay eventually forced a pass inside, and Somers came up with the loose ball.

Back the other way, a Somers turnover returned John Jay to the attack, but this thwarting proved even more problematic for the home team. Finja Degl perfectly found her sister Jojo right in front of Emma Donaldson, and a 2-0 lead seemed a certainty.

A second look required, the Somers goalie turned a key that she held in her hip pocket all day. “I was just really locked in,” said the sophomore.

The Tusker quickly made an outlet pass, and Ingraham got on her elephant. She then played back and forth with Jocelyn Klein, and upon return, the Notre Dame commit was checked to the ground. A free shot, she went straight on from the 12 and tied the game at one.

5:02 left in the first, Ingraham took another draw. But Kauftheil did some stick work on the sideline to give her team the ball back, and the defensive game plan of the sixth seed went back into play. Finja Degl was fouled outside the eight, she pulled back on the penalty shot, and John Jay was forced back beyond reach.

The strategy was still a work in progress, though. Jojo Degl found Jordan Kauftheil on the left, and she weaved through three defenders to put the shot past Donaldson at 2:19.

A little momentum, John Jay tried to stop Ingraham’s. Kaityln Condon into the circle, a win went to the Wolves, and Coco Inglis got in deep. On the goal line she cut in front, and a trip put the attacker on the free shot line.

Ten yards away, Inglis also opted to pass, which had Donaldson posing a different theory for all the dump offs. “They must have been scared,” the goalie joked.

Still a pretty good setup for Kauftheil on the left, her shot went high, and on the reset, the Degl’s tried to do their normal thing. First Finja ran into a two man wall, and next, Jojo was denied by a quartet.

A tone set, the second quarter had Ingraham reestablishing in the circle. She took the ball out of the air, and Somers set up. Nothing fancy, Caitlyn Mayfield took a pass from behind, was covered one on one and went around the defense to face down Molly Gallagher. The Wolf won the initial battle. But Mayfield stayed with the play and stuffed in the rebound at 11:26.

All tied, John Jay won the face, and the going was still rough. The Degl’s contained again, Coco Inglis fought her way to the goal line and was not left with much of an angle.

Donaldson easily snared with her catcher, and the tide was about to turn permanently. On the way upfield, Klein took a stick to the head by Jane Brennan, and a two minute yellow card was issued. 22 seconds later, Ingraham caught Mayfield on the cut out front, and her overhead beat Gallagher.

And Ingraham readied to quickly rub it in. She took the draw herself, gave it up for Mia Paulmeno, and like that, the junior gave Somers a 4-2 lead.

Another switch in the middle for John Jay, Dillion Hill put a pause on the Ingraham express, and the Wolves were able to kill the penalty. Only leaving 12 seconds on the shot clock, the Somers defense made easy work of the brief attack.

The subsequent Tusker incursion was short lived too. The girls got up the field, and Ingraham took it from there. She drew the defense left, cut back to the right, and with Hill draping, the middie scored on a falling down shot past Gallagher.

At 6:41, Finja Degl skied for Hill’s lift, and John Jay knew what they needed to do. Of course, the Somers traffic jam was there, but the offense still drew a penalty. A pass play again, Amelia Inglis hit Micayla DeVeau cutting from the other side, and left in front of Donaldson, the ball found the net.

The John Jay sigh of relief didn’t last, though. DeVeau was whistled for being in the crease, and the three goal lead remained with 5:27 left in the half.

Back a minute later, Jojo Degl found herself at the charity stripe twice, and both times she tried to go it alone. A not so good neighbor, Donaldson kept Degl company and made the saves.

Still, John Jay kept at it, and the diligence paid off. Not by much because only a perfect Finja Degl pass into a surrounded DeVeau closed the halftime scoreboard at 5-3.

Onto the third, Somers played school yard ball. A game of keep away ensued, and not just with the ball on offense. The pressure defense kept John Jay away from Donaldson and forced turnovers on four of the five offensive possessions.

Donaldson took care of the fifth, which had the defense playing a big part. Jojo Degl’s attempt to squeeze through two defenders yielded a weak shot and proved easy work for the Somers goalie.

12 minutes to go, Ingraham centered the defense by taking all the fourth period draws. Of course, John Jay wasn’t giving up, and after trading turnovers, Somers may have thought they were seeing ghosts.

Kauftheil conjuring the past, the senior went around a pick on the right, and with very little margin for error among the defensive containment, she threaded one past Donaldson at 8:55.

Good news for Somers, they had a ghostbuster. Up in the middle for Mayfield, Ingraham directed credit elsewhere for her mastery. “My draw team is so special,” she beamed, “I couldn’t do this with anyone else.”

Her attack team ain’t bad either. On the set up, Ingraham dumped inside to Mayfield, and her lightning release regained the two goal lead.

Only 44 seconds elapsing, the Ingraham defense wasn’t done resting. Degl taking another go in the circle, there was no sister to be found. That had Mayfield standing as the soul kind for Ingraham, and she was about to zap John Jay’s spirit for good.

The sophomore received on the left from Ingraham and juked her way past the John Jay defense for another confrontation with Gallagher. Up high, Mayfield shot down and scored her fourth goal of the day.

The writing on the wall, Ingraham was about to etch the outcome in stone. Another draw win, Somers killed clock, and when the ball finally got to Paulmeno, the attacker proved more than a footnote. She hit Ingraham in a post up position on the left, and an underhand whiplash increased the lead to four.

5:44 remaining, Ingraham provided the finishing touch, which had Coach Daly setting aside her past heartbreak in favor of the players. “It’s really nice for our seniors. They really showed up tonight and were great leaders,” she concluded.