Griswold scores two in Ballston Spa’s 5-0 win over Glens Falls
COLONIE, NY » It took Ballston Spa a little bit to get going on Wednesday night against Glens Falls at Afirms in Colonie, but once they did, it was all Scotties.
“Once they actually get out on the pitch, I think they’re just so excited to be playing and that’s why you see a lot of those big shots going over the net,” said head coach Brian Retersdorf. “It’s taken them 15 to 20 minutes to calm down really get going, but once they do they control that ball and have been a pretty competitive team.”
On Wednesday night, they defeated Glens Falls 5-0.
The Scotties got their first goal about twenty minutes into the contest when Sarah Rule came down the middle to score. They added another after the first mask break when Mikayla Kelley put a perfectly placed ball on the ground into the bottom right corner of the net beneath the dive of the Glens Fall’s keeper.
The second half is when Isabelle Griswold would begin her big night. The Scotties senior would score two goals to put the game out of reach for Glens Falls.
“It was a good slot from my teammate Morgan and I was able to keep it steady in front of the goal and put it in the net,” Griswold said. “I took us awhile to get our composure but once we calmed down a little bit we were able to start scoring and pick up the win today.”
Ballston Spa’s final goal came from off cross over the middle from the bottom right inside the 18, finding it’s way into the net over a leaping Glens Fall’s keeper.
That would go on the become the final score, 5-0.
“This year our team pretty different from the past. Obviously we’re not playing our usual Suburban Council opponents,” Griswold said. “I think we’ve really gelled a lot and everyone’s really getting along and having a lot of fun. We’re really just grateful to have a season.”
While both Ballston Spa and Bethlehem are playing as members of the Foothills Council this spring, Griswold noted the familiarity and friendly rivalries that usually comes when playing Suburban Council opponents.
“The club team that I played for, the girls come from all different areas across the Suburban Council. Almost every team we would play there would be at least one person that I knew. Even on Bethlehem this season, I have a lot of old teammates and friends on that team.”
Retersdorf gave his thoughts as well on this abnormal Fall 2 season.
“I do miss preparing for games against all of the Suburban Council schools. Those games are always tight and come down to the wire. Big schools like Saratoga, Averill Park and even Shen and Niskayuna we’ve really started to compete with,” he said. “Even though the scoreboard didn’t show it, I’m happy with the progress we’ve made in our last game against Bethlehem.”
At the end of the day, it is the Foothills who are providing the Scotties the opportunity to play league games this time around.
“I definitely want to thank the Foothills Council for taking us in. They didn’t have to, but they did and we’re grateful to their coaches, athletic directors and administrators for agreeing to do so.”
Ballston Spa is scheduled to play next against Scotia-Glenville on April 3 at 1 p.m. at Afrims. Between Afrims and Burnt Hills, the Scotties will be doing a lot of traveling for their home games, finding turf to play on as their home field is all grass.
“We’ve really been working on adjusting to playing our games on turf. There’s a much faster pace to the game and like today it was wet too,” Retersdorf said. “The ball gets to the sidelines faster and that’s something that we’ve been getting used to.”
FINAL: BALLSTON SPA 5, GLENS FALLS 0
Afrims Sports Park
Colonie, NY
BALLSTON SPA 2-3 — 5
GLENS FALLS 0-0 — 0
FIRST HALF
#39 - 1-0 BSPA
#10 - 2-0 BSPA
SECOND HALF
#32 Izzy Griswold 3-0
BSPA #32 Izzy Griswold 4-0
BSPA #11 - 5-0 BSPA