Ward Melville Patriots girls soccer wins semifinals, on way to taking county championship
By Bill Landon
The Patriots of Ward Melville, the Suffolk Class AAA top seed, hosted Connetquot (No.4) Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, in the semifinal round, a game that was met by warm temperatures and brilliant sunshine.
The game was scoreless through 39 minutes of play. Then Aliyah Leonard lobbed a ball in front of the goal where Adriana Victoriano headed the ball to the back of the net to take a 1-0 lead with 0:36 seconds left in the opening half. Victoriano struck again in the opening minute of the second half following a rebound for the easy goal to put the Patriots out-front 2-0. The Thunderbirds struggled to gain traction the rest of the way when forward Maddy Costello’s shot on goal found its mark to give the Patriots a 3-0 lead that prevailed at the final buzzer.
Goalkeeper Kate Ronzoni had five saves for the Patriots.
Ward Melville triumphed in the Suffolk Class AAA championship final Tuesday, Oct. 31, by beating No. 6 seed Smithtown East 3-0 with two goals by Breena Harrigan and another by Samantha Ruffini.
The Patriots advance to the Long Island championship round where they will face Massapequa at Shoreham-Wading River High School Saturday, Nov. 4. Game time is scheduled at 4 p.m.
— Photos by Bill Landon
