BY GENE NARDI
The Wellington High School girls soccer team traveled Friday, Nov. 20 to take on Seminole Ridge High School, never relinquishing the lead to defeat the Hawks 6-1 at Callery-Judge Stadium. Six different players scored for the Wolverines (5-3-1) on the night.
Seminole Ridge (4-2) started out strong. Striker Savanna Rallo challenged Jessica Hole, the Wellington goalkeeper, by forcing her to come off her line early to make the save and keep the game scoreless. The early Hawk assault awakened an aggressive Wellington front, and within minutes, Seminole Ridge goalkeeper Brittney Katz had recorded three saves.
Ten minutes into the contest, forward Megan Cebollero scored the game’s first goal for the Wolverines. Cebollero found a seam in the Hawk defense, and placed the ball accurately into the net for a 1-0 Wellington lead. Midfielder Samantha Sullivan added to the Wellington lead by launching a shot from just outside the 18-yard box, striking the back of the net for a 2-0 Wolverine lead.
The Hawks continued to battle in midfield but could not maintain possession, then turned the ball over with a defensive error at the tip of the box. Alexandra Rehr zeroed in on the ball and took a quick shot to extend Wellington’s lead to 3-0 in the 20th minute.
The Hawks pushed the action with high pressure, but Wellington’s defense kept them off the scoreboard, and the Wolverines held on to a 3-0 halftime lead. Katz had six saves in the first half to give the Hawks a chance to rally in the second half.
Four more goals were scored in the second half. Wellington grabbed two early goals to take a 5-0 lead, but the Hawks closed the margin off a set play from a corner kick. Hawk forward Danielle Knabenshue drove the ball in past the Wellington defense inside the box as the ball dropped in to make it 5-1.
Wellington would score one more goal to put the match out of reach for the Hawks. Midfielder Claire Masta took a shot off of a mishandled save from a Wellington corner kick, making it 6-1.
“The best way to put it is we’re trying to become a full team,” Wellington coach Mike Kozlowski said. “We’ve been trying to get the ball to the corner flag and whip it in and see what happens.”
Katz recorded 10 saves for the Hawks.
Seminole Ridge was off this week. Wellington traveled to play rival Palm Beach Central High School on Tuesday, but the results were not available by press time.
ABOVE: Striker Savanna Rallo strikes the ball off a corner kick to score the lone goal for the Hawks.
