Tags Posts tagged with "John Diehl"

John Diehl

Coach reflects on the road to the state championship

By John Diehl

Head Coach Ward Melville Girls Soccer

Last weekend, the Ward Melville girls soccer team won its first state championship in program history. After defeating perennial powerhouse Massapequa in the Long Island Championship, Ward Melville traveled to Dryden, NY, to compete in the Class AA State semifinal against Monroe-Woodbury High School, a program use to success, winning back-to-back state titles in 2018 and 2019. 

This year’s state championship semifinal showdown would be played in rainy conditions. After a 0-0 draw at the end of regulation, the game went into “sudden victory” overtime. 

Midway through the first overtime period, senior Grace Justiniano crossed a ball into the top of the penalty area. Sophomore Adri Victoriano pressured the Monroe-Woodbury goalkeeper as she tried to catch the ball, but the ball bounced out to the feet of Mia Pirozzi, who scored the game winning goal. 

Following the thrilling victory, Mia those defining moments of play. 

“Right place, right time,” she said. “I just happened to be there.” 

The next day, the Patriots played Clarence High School in the final, where weather would once again be a significant factor, with snow, clouds, and sun taking turns sporadically throughout the game. 

From the beginning, we established control and played a great game.  We put three goals in the net during regulation, but they were all called back for either offsides or fouls. Once again the score was tied 0-0 in at the end of regulation, meaning yet another sudden victory-overtime. 

At the coin toss before OT, captain Elyse Munoz learned that if the game was still 0-0 at the end of both OT periods, then both teams would be declared co-champs.  This had happened to us in 2020, when Sachem East and Ward Melville were declared co-county champs, and the team was not going to let history repeat itself. 

“I refuse to lose,” Elyse said. “I refuse to tie. I won’t let that happen again.” 

We came out on fire in OT, and in just under four minutes of the first period, Maddy Costello passed a through ball to Adri Victoriano, who drove down towards the goal, passed the ball to Mia Pirozzi, just missing the hands of the diving Clarence goalkeeper. For the second consecutive game, Mia guided the ball into the net for the game winning goal. 

En route to our state championship, we had an undefeated season with a 17-0-3 record.  Along with winning the states, we also were crowned Long Island and Suffolk County Champions.  

Our team gave up only eight goals on the season, earned 12 shutouts, and shut out  both teams we faced in the state tournament. 

Our players of the games at states were Mia Pirozzi in the semifinal and Peyton Costello in the final. Our captains are Elyse Munoz, Elian Hamou, Emma Ward, and Peyton Costello. 

All season long, we reinforced to the girls that they continue to rise to every challenge that comes their way. 

“It was an absolute pleasure being on the sideline watching such a talented group of players and coaches come together to make history for Ward Melville Athletics and our Girls Soccer program. It was a magical weekend, where so many family members, community members, alumni, and former coaches came out to support the team. … Congratulations to our NY State Class AA 2022 Girls Soccer Champions!” said Kevin Finnerty, Athletic Director.

by -
0 4354
Arianna Barbieri strikes the ball past a William Floyd defender. Photo by John Dielman

Ward Melville’s soccer team has an advantage most teams don’t: the connection between twin sisters Kerri and Nicole Liucci.

On their senior night, in a 3-0 win over William Floyd Oct. 16, the two scored a goal apiece, and assisted on each other’s tallies to help the Patriots (10-3-2, 9-2-2 League I) power through.

“We have twin telepathy,” Kerri Liucci said. “We work hard together.”

Nicole Liucci passes the ball downfield. Photo by John Dielman

Nicole Liucci was first to find the back of the net after her twin received a pass from the corner, and moved the ball front and center in the box. With a mid-air knock-in, the Liucci sisters made it an early 1-0 advantage.

“We have a really strong bond and we know where each other is at all times,” Nicole Liucci said. “I kept saying to myself, ‘I need to get the ball in the net.’ My sister passed it to me and I kicked it right in.”

More than 25 minutes passed before the Patriots propelled the ball into the net a second time. On a strike from 30 yards out, midfielder Arianna Barbieri found the far left corner, which was a surprise even to her.

“I decided to just wing it,” she said. “Watching it sail over and into the net felt really good. We were pushing the ball as hard as we could trying to score early and shut them down.”

Ward Melville’s defense held down the Colonials in the second half, despite losing returning All-County defender Kayla Winicki to a torn ACL in the first game of the season against Northport. Liv Halvorsen has stepped up to fill her place on the back line, knocking away chances and battling for crucial possession, which she’ll need to continue if Ward Melville wants to win a League I title.

“We had some girls step in and take over and they’ve been great and adjusted well,” Ward Melville head coach John Diehl said. “We’re gelling now and coming together in different ways.”

Kerri Liucci moves the ball across midfield. Photo by John Dielman

Kerri Liucci put the game out of reach with 12 minutes left when she sent the ball into the corner from close range. She had a chance at a goal seconds earlier, when she pushed the ball past a fallen William Floyd goalkeeper, but a defender batted it away. She said she was overjoyed to finally get on the stat sheet.

“I really wanted to score on senior night,” she said. “I tried, put all my effort behind the ball and it went in, and it felt amazing because I was working hard the whole game to get a goal. It was rewarding.”

The three seniors that scored on Ward Melville’s senior night are the three longest tenured members of the team.

“The girls get so excited for this day,” Diehl said of his 14 upperclassmen. “Their energy is high, their spirits are high and they ended up doing well. They’ve endured a lot and they’re a nice group of seniors. I love seeing them happy — it makes me smile.”

After what could potentially have been the last home game for Ward Melville this season, the Patriots soaked it in as the bench cleared in celebration of a successful shutout. Ward Melville travels to Brentwood for the final game of the regular season Oct. 18. If the Patriots come away with a win, they’ll also grab a piece of the League I title for the first time in years.

“Brentwood is always a strong team,” Diehl said. “It’s always tough against Brentwood at their house, too, because they play on grass and we’re not used to that surface, but heading into this last week I like where we are.”

Ward Melville's Kerri Liucci is congratulated by her teammates after scoring the first goal of the game. Photo by Desirée Keegan

The Ward Melville girls’ soccer team faced some adversity late in the first half of their season-opening game, but the Patriots pushed through the wind, kept their heads up and got down to business.

Junior striker Kerri Liucci scored a hat trick to propel Ward Melville’s 4-1 win over Smithtown West in nonleague action Sept. 5.

“It’s the first time we’ve scored a hat trick in a while,” Ward Melville head coach John Diehl said. “We got a bit rattled, but I spoke to them at halftime about keeping their composure, getting their minds in the right place and winning the 50/50 balls in the middle and establishing our game we had in the first 20 minutes, and I think we did that.”

Smithtown West's Gabby Lorefice sends the ball into play. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Smithtown West’s Gabby Lorefice sends the ball into play. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Less than three minutes into the game, Liucci scored her first goal after some back and forth in front of the net off a corner kick allowed her to knock the ball into an open right side of the net.

“I was trying to find the ball; trying to get a hit off of it,” she said. “Smithtown West went to go clear it, but I got my body in front of it.”

She tallied her second goal minutes later, when Smithtown West’s goalkeeper Gabby Lorefice came out of the box to stop the ball.

“I kept my composure, and let myself play how I usually do,” she said.

With three minutes left in the first half, Smithtown West senior forward Alicia Daoust scored off a corner kick, and the Bulls’ bench erupted in excitement, which gave them a boost heading into halftime.

Both teams came out ready to fight in the second half, and Lorefice made some of her crucial nine saves on the evening in the final 40 minutes to keep her team in the game.

“We came out a bit flat and it cost us in the beginning — they made us pay for it,” Smithtown West head coach Rob Schretzmayer said. “They pressed us. They’re a good team, and just very aggressive. We were on our heels, and we were chasing a little at the end. Credit to [Ward Melville] — with the wind on their back—they caught us again.”

With 17:49 left to play, a high kick bounced over Lorefice’s head, and Liucci scored her third goal of the game. Junior back Victoria Vitale added insurance with just under 10 minutes left.

Ward Melville's Rose Lopez sends the ball downfield while Smithtown West opponents race to block the pass. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Ward Melville’s Rose Lopez sends the ball downfield while Smithtown West opponents race to block the pass. Photo by Desirée Keegan

The Patriots, are loaded with experienced upperclassmen on their roster, an advantage not lost on one of the team’s leaders.

“Our fitness is really high, we work really well together and have a really good relationship with each other that I think translates onto the field,” senior center back Megan Raftery said. “I’ve been playing with some of these girls since kindergarten, so we know each other’s strengths and we know how to build on each other’s strengths.”

That chemistry showed in connected passes and the girls getting open for one another, according to Liucci, who said the team is looking to make a big statement this season.

“We’ll keep working hard in practice and pushing one another,” she said.

Despite the 4-1 victory, Diehl still saw room for his team to improve.

“With the experience we have and the attitude of the girls, this is a special group,” he said. “This group wants to play and want to do the best. They’re getting over that mental hump and gaining confidence, and I think they’re looking good. Given the quality of the opponent — Smithtown West one of the top teams in the county — gives us a better understanding of what level we can play at, and gives them the confidence to believe in themselves. We can play really good soccer.”

by -
0 2140
Ward Melville
Ward Melville junior midfielder Madison Hobbes is chased for the ball in the Patriots' 6-0 shut out of Brentowod on Oct. 5. Photo by Bill Landon
Ward Melville junior midfielder Madison Hobbes is chased for the ball in the Patriots’ 6-0 shut out of Brentowod on Oct. 5. Photo by Bill Landon

By Bill Landon

After a slow start, and leading 2-0 at the end of 40 minutes, the Ward Melville girls’ soccer team leaned on its bench in the second half to overpower Brentwood and put the game away, 6-0.

“I was happy with our play in the first five to 10 minutes when we scored quick, but we fell into a lull — thinking we were going to have an easy game,” Ward Melville head coach John Diehl said. “I didn’t like our performance for most of the first half, but we picked it up midway through the second.”

Ward Melville sophomore forward Kerri Liucci opened the scoring four minutes in when she broke free of defenders and shot from the left side, beating the keeper to the right corner for the score.

Junior midfielder and co-captain Megan Raftery struck next off a corner kick, to help the Patriots edge ahead, 2-0.

Ward Melville senior forward and co-captain Ciara Guglielmo stops the ball to gain possession at midfield in the Patriots' 6-0 blanking of Brentwood on Oct. 5. Photo by Bill Landon
Ward Melville senior forward and co-captain Ciara Guglielmo stops the ball to gain possession at midfield in the Patriots’ 6-0 blanking of Brentwood on Oct. 5. Photo by Bill Landon

“We had good possession today — we really stepped it up even though we had a considerable lead,” Raftery said. “But it was a much better effort in that second half.”

Diehl said he decided to start some players in the second half who don’t normally start and don’t receive as much playing time.

“They came in and did a great job,” he said. “They did what we wanted, because we needed a change in the second half.”

Raftery opened the second half with her second goal of the game, after leaping in the air and heading a corner kick past the keeper with authority, for a three-goal advantage.

“I’m designated to go to the net for every corner [kick],” Raftery said. “It was a cross from Ciara Guglielmo and I was able to head it in. It’s a set play for us and we practice it all the time.”

On a crossing pass three minutes later, sophomore midfielder Arianna Barbieri passed to junior midfielder Hannah Hobbes, who buried her shot.

Ward Melville junior midfielder and co-captain Megan Raftery, who had two goals in the Patriots' 6-0 win at Brentwood on Oct. 5, heads the ball. Photo by Bill Landon
Ward Melville junior midfielder and co-captain Megan Raftery, who had two goals in the Patriots’ 6-0 win at Brentwood on Oct. 5, heads the ball. Photo by Bill Landon

“I got a great cross and I just tapped it in,” Hobbes said. “We had a better second half with better possession and good passing.”

With just over 20 minutes left to play, it was Guglielmo, a senior forward and co-captain’s turn, as she drove a teammate’s rebound off a save from the Brentwood goalkeeper back at the net, and this time, in, for the 5-0 lead.

“I thought we had great possession on a grass field, because we usually don’t play on grass,” Guglielmo said. “It’s bumpy and a different way of play, so in the second half we got used to the [field] and played to our feet.”

Rounding out the scoring for Ward Melville was junior forward Erin O’Connor, who found the net at the 18:13 mark, to put the game away, 6-0.

With the win, the Patriots improve to 7-1-2 in League I, and will travel to Sachem North Wednesday for a 4:15 p.m. game.