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Early goal lifts Oswego past rival Oswego East
Updated: May 10, 2011 9:00PM
While every second in a soccer match counts, coaches will tell you it is important to play your best in the first and last five minutes of the half.
Oswego took this popular philosophy to heart and it paid off.
Cathy Tram’s unassisted goal 4:50 into the first half proved to be the difference as Oswego defeated rival Oswego East 1-0 in its final regular season match.
“One of the things we talked about before the game was scoring first and once we did we reminded them that you have to keep on playing as if you didn’t score,” Panthers coach Jamie Bartkowiak said.
The victory was sweet revenge for the Panthers (8-7-3, 6-1 SPC), who lost the last two games to their district rivals. Each match was decided by one goal.
Tram corralled a through ball and created some space after dribbling past two Wolves defenders. The senior then blasted a right-footed shot from 23 yards away that slipped by the Wolves goalkeeper. It was the first shot of the game for either team.
“I really wasn’t expecting it to go in,” Tram said. “I know I struck it well, but I thought the keeper had it because it looked as if she had her hands right where they should have been. I was happy it snuck through and obviously it affected the game. We had a lot of 1-0 games lately and I’m glad we have been on the winning end of them.”
Oswego, winners of seven straight games, had the wind at its back in the first half and dominated play, outshooting the Wolves 8-2. However, the Panthers only had one goal to show for their efforts.
“The wind affected a lot of the balls up in the air, but honestly the biggest factor was the heat,” Tram said. “It is the first game we played in it and you don’t know how you are going to react.”
Oswego East (11-7-1, 3-4 SPC) looked like a different team to start the second half and had two quality chances to begin the frame. A cross from the far corner was just shot wide 17 seconds into the half, and two minutes later Sam Lee hit the crossbar on a tough-angle shot from 10 yards away.
“We’ve created opportunities for ourselves all season, but we just can’t connect or finish them,” Wolves coach Lauren Anderson said. “It has been the story of our season.”
The Wolves had one last chance with 2:35 remaining as Oswego goalie Amy Annala tipped a high-arcing shot from 25 yards out away from the goal, and the Panther defense was able to recover and clear the ball away.
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