Girls' Soccer versus Handley

By Tom Myrick
Special to The Winchester Star

WINCHESTER — There was more late drama at the Handley Bowl on Monday night, as late goals from Cassie Alamo and Cindy Quarles propelled the Judges to a 2-1 win over James Wood.

The home side appeared destined for defeat after the Colonels’ Cat Woznak stabbed home a Deanna Shenk cross just before halftime, but a clutch 78th-minute free kick from Alamo sent the game into overtime, where Quarles’ thumping header from a corner secured all three points for Handley. The win, in their fourth consecutive overtime game, extends the Judges’ three-match unbeaten streak, and it temporarily moves them into a tie for first place in the Northwestern District with Sherando, though Handley (4-5-3, 3-1-1 Northwestern) has played one more game.

But, in all fairness, the final score was harsh on James Wood (0-7-3, 0-3-1), which dominated long stretches of the match and frustrated the Handley attackers throughout.

“We got lucky today,” admitted Handley coach Luke Mason. “They outplayed us for 90 minutes and had us on our heels much of the game. They were winning balls and were keeping possession better than we were. We just got two great finishes from Cassie and Cindy at the end.”

Interestingly enough, it was a formation shift that came not from the coaches’ box, but from the players themselves that changed the game for the Judges.

Originally in a defensive position just in front of sweeper Colleen Koppenhaver, Quarles took it upon herself to take a more advanced role as the game wore on. The move paid off — Quarles drew the foul to set up the first goal before hitting the game-winner herself.

“I’d love to take credit for it, but Cindy took it upon herself to move up,” Mason said. “I was hesitant to go down another goal, but I guess she is just more willing to take the risk than I am.”

“Our team really switches positions a lot,” Quarles said. “We are all really rounded players and can play anywhere, so we change around sometimes.”

Though Handley held its own in a 1-1 draw against Sherando last week, any suggestion of an easy victory against James Wood was quickly dispelled. The well-organized Colonels disrupted the Handley passing attack by playing with five defenders and four in midfield, and though the Judges enjoyed plenty of possession in the first half, they never really presented any real threat to the goal.

Tala Curry had Handley’s best chance of the first half, when she got on the end of an excellent deep cross from Alison Snow. Snow’s ball from the right wing found the winger with a yard of space at the back post, but Curry’s header bounced well wide of the target.

Though the ball spent most of the opening half on the James Wood’s end of the field, the Colonels remained dangerous on the break.

Handley keeper Holly Ogilvie had to be alert to tip over a long-range effort from Sarah Callaham, whose high shot from 30 yards seemed to be drifting toward the top corner.

The Judges failed to heed that warning, however, and in the 39th minute, the Colonels made them pay. There seemed to be no real danger as James Wood took a simple throw-in down the left, but after a quick turn, Shenk threaded a driven ball through the Handley defense and straight to Woznak. The forward settled the ball with her first touch before poking a simple shot past Ogilvie and into the open net.

Handley looked to retaliate immediately after the break, and Alamo just failed to control another outstanding pass from Snow, who had chipped the ball over the visiting defense. Defender Nancy Riggleman then denied Alamo with a brave challenge, her crunching tackle outside the area preventing a breakaway after a clever turn by the Handley forward.

But after weathering that early storm, James Wood began to get its footing in the second half as well.

The Judges were still struggling to string passes together against the crowded midfield, and the Colonels could have gone two goals up if any player could have gotten a touch on a dangerous Callaham corner kick, which rolled agonizingly across the face of goal before being hacked clear by a Handley defender.

As time wound down, the Judges began to push forward and roll the dice. Quarles moved into an attacking midfield position and would have the ball in the back of the net soon after, but her tidy finish was correctly ruled out for offside.

With just two minutes to play, the Colonels’ brave resistance was finally broken. Alamo assumed responsibility for a late free kick 22 yards from goal, and her high curling shot just glanced off of the fingertips of James Wood keeper Kaleigh Fincham before crashing high into the net.

Fincham would get a small measure of revenge in the first period of overtime with an outstanding stop to keep her side in the game. A measured through ball from Quarles sent Handley’s Myrina Booker racing through on goal, but her 40-yard run proved to be all for nothing as Fincham dove to stop the midfielder’s shot with her legs.

James Wood continued to fight for a well-deserved point, but Handley struck again just 15 seconds into the second overtime. After some persistent pressure from Snow had won the Judges a corner, Quarles rose highest to meet Alamo’s delivery with a ferocious header into the bottom right corner of the goal, giving Fincham no chance.

“I was really, really excited,” Quarles said afterward. “I’ve never scored one like that in my high school career.”

The Alamo-Quarles duo nearly combined for a third goal minutes later, though this time Quarles header sneaked wide of the far post as the final whistle blew.

Despite the tough loss, James Wood coach Jim Carden was full of praise for his team.

“We gave everything we had,” he said. “It’s not because of a lack of effort. We’ve had a lot of close games. We just can’t seem to get the last [goal], and that’s what good teams do.

“Sometimes the game is cruel. With two minutes to go, I thought we would win. But we made a few mistakes, and they made the most of it. We just need to move on to the next game.”