Broncos back in D-II final
The Burrillville girls soccer team beat No. 7 Westerly, 1-0, in overtime to advance to Sunday’s final
JOHNSTON – The rematch for Division II girls soccer supremacy has been officially confirmed.
No. 3 seed Burrillville kept up its end of the bargain with a thrilling 1-0 double overtime victory over No. 7 seed Westerly in the semifinals at Polisena Field on Thursday night. The Broncos finally broke through with 21 seconds left in the second five-minute overtime session. Senior Elizabeth Ethier converted off a set play by junior Aliza Richard, who delivered a perfect ball with the hope that someone in a white jersey would be able to clear some space.
That someone was Ethier, who collected the ball and volleyed it past Westerly goalie Macie Woycik with time winding down.
“Just like we practiced,” said Burrillville head coach Jeff Lavigne with a smile. “Westerly made things hard for us, but we stuck with it.”
The Broncos will now face top seed and defending D-III champion Scituate in Sunday’s 2 p.m. final at Rhode Island College – the Spartans defeated Moses Brown by a 1-0 count earlier Thursday. The Broncos and Spartans met under similar championship-on-the-line circumstances last year with Scituate prevailing, 1-0.
“They’re the class of the league. Honestly, they could be considered one of the best teams in the state. They’re that good,” said Lavigne. “We’re going to have our work cut out for us. If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best.”
The first half was predominantly played on one side of the field as the Broncos dominated possession. The Bulldogs did not record a shot on Nicole Ethier, who was called to make a play on a through ball early in the contest. Ethier finished with two saves.
Sam Prario had a hand in Burrillville’s two best chances in the opening half. At the 34minute mark, the junior unleashed a bending shot that glanced off the crossbar. Seven minutes later, Prario sent a crossing feed that just missed connecting with junior Kathryn Ferreira, who was stationed right in front of the net.
Westerly did perk up a bit in the second half and appeared to have a golden chance to become the first team to make on a dent on the scoreboard after Burrillville was whistled for a yellow card with 4:35 left in regulation. Instead, the bid from 13 yards out by Bulldogs midfielder Abiageal Keegan sailed harmlessly out of bounds.
When the Broncos met the Bulldogs during the team’s Oct. 19 regular-season meeting, Burrillville got goals from Rebecca Hetu and Prario in a 2-0 win.
The playoff road that each squad took to reach Thursday’s semifinal was somewhat similar as each squad posted a 1-0 victory in their respective quarterfinal-round tilt. The difference was that Westerly needed to survive a nine-round penalty kick shootout to top North Smithfield while Burrillville scored the game’s lone goal in regulation against Mount St. Charles.