The Bromfield girls varsity soccer game against Littleton last Friday was its seventh of the 2013 season. Fought under the sunny yet cool and windy weather, the game held some scary moments for both teams.
As the first half began, Bromfield tried to seize the initiative with an early attempt on Littleton’s goal by Reiny Foster, but she was blocked by Littleton’s goalkeeper Julia Pitino. Both Pitino and her counterpart, Bromfield goalie Meghanne Fitzsimmons, kept the ball from reaching their team’s goal line throughout the first half, and for a while the game seemed to be between them, not the opposing offensive players.
Ashley Buraczynski of Littleton received two fouls as she knocked into Bromfield players, earning them free kicks. Kayla Nixon, a Littleton striker, also cost her team momentum when she was passed the ball beyond the last line of Bromfield defenders, leading to an offsides call.
Missing by inches
Bromfield was literally inches away from scoring first when a shot from Sophia Turchetta went off the goalpost, allowing Julia Pitino to get it away. After a timeout, there was a frightening moment when Bromfield’s Sofia Catalina collided with Ali Austin of Littleton. Both players were fine and remained in the game. But the hard hits continued, as Deirdre Kennedy from Bromfield was knocked back by Littleton’s Kellie Larsen as the half neared its end. Alexandra Autio of Littleton sent a ball over the goalpost, which came close to scoring the tie-breaking goal. Then, as if things couldn’t get any scarier for Bromfield, Lizzie Rooney was knocked down and looked seriously hurt for a moment. But she, too, was fine, and remained in the game for the rest of the half, which ended with a score of 0-0.
As the second half got under way, Rylee Osgood of Bromfield was fouled after being tripped, which gave her a chance for a direct kick. But she missed, and Littleton caught a break. Bromfield also caught a break when their starting goalie blocked a ball in midair, sending it out of bounds and preventing a potential first goal for Littleton. Two timeouts led to a couple of breakaways for Littleton, but each time Littleton’s Nixon got the ball, she was called offsides, giving Bromfield the chance to start their scoring. Upon receiving a pass from Turchetta, Osgood scored Bromfield’s first and only goal of the game, breaking the scoreless tie.
A tough day for the goalie
Soon after, however, Nixon finally got the ball past Bromfield’s defense. Approaching the goal she collided with Bromfield’s Fitzsimmons, knocking down both players, while the ball dribbled into the net, tying the game at 1-1. Meghanne had been hurt on the collision, but stayed in despite her nasty fall. She made a couple more saves before Littleton’s Alana Johnston found a hole on a pass from Jenna Hlystek, giving Littleton a 2-1 lead. Making matters worse for Bromfield, Meghanne took a kick to her head, and was finally taken out. That left the goalkeeping to Jenn Symula. The one remaining chance Bromfield had to tie this game came from a free kick as Rooney booted the ball towards Osgood. It seemed like a clear shot, but Osgood was just wide of the goal. From that point on, Bromfield was unable to regain its momentum, and the game ended with a 2-1 loss to Littleton.
Michael Jarosz is a junior at the Bromfield School
