Franco powers South Brunswick girls soccer
It was a tale of two tapes for the East Brunswick and South Brunswick High School girls soccer teams on Saturday morning.
A week has been removed from when the Bears were able to slip in a game winning goal in the second overtime to avoid losing their perfect season.
This week they could not survive round two against the Vikings. Julianna Franco proved to be the deciding factor for South Brunswick on Saturday on its home turf. With 27 minutes remaining in a scoreless game between the two GMC Red Division foes, Franco went darting in to grab a loose ball and found her teammate Francesca Dimitrakis, who proceeded in finding the back of the net.
South Brunswick locked down defense for the remainder of the contest to hold on for a 1-0 victory.
“The sweeper was trying to block me off so I couldn’t get it, and allow the keeper to come and get the ball,” Franco said about the decisive goal. “I didn’t want them to get the ball, so I kind of slid my foot in there just enough to get the ball in play.
“Last week was setting the tone for this week. We played really hard last week and we haven’t played that way in a while. I think remembering that influenced the way we performed today.”
The Vikings’ relentless effort gave them an upper hand on Saturday. Francesca Dimitrakis was a prime example of South Brunswick’s refusal to lose again to the Bears. Dimitrakis was sidelined for a majority of the first half after she injured her ankle and could barely put pressure on it, let alone play for her team.
After icing her injury and doing some sprints on the sideline, Dimitrakis told her coach she wanted to return. The junior played an important role in the victory as she was able to score the game winning goal.
“She is a fighter. She wants to compete,” South Brunswick coach Beth Barrio said. “She is definitely not at her best injury-wise, but mentally she wanted to play. She literally powered through. She came up to us and said, ‘It hurts but I want to go.’ I think today you saw the mental athlete that she is.”
South Brunswick avoided another close defeat on Saturday, one that could have been detrimental to its spirits. The previous week the Vikings lost two double overtime games to Piscataway and Monroe, then followed that up with a 1-0 loss to Monroe. The Red Division is not a walk in the park and the young Vikings team is beginning to learn that lesson.
“The Red Division is always very strong,” Barrio said. “A 2-4 record in the Red Division doesn’t define the strength of a team. Our last few games have been competitive and I don’t think it necessarily translates, but it’s nice to be in the other column today.”
Sydney Schneider was sharp in net once again. She has been the driving force behind South Brunswick’s tightly contested games. The junior keeper made timely saves to keep her shutout in tact. Her biggest save came in the second half when East Brunswick had a sizeable opening, but Schneider was able to knock the ball away with her finger tips. She finished the shutout with 14 saves.
“Sydney is deceptive. She’s not the loudest or most aggressive goal keeper, but she is definitely a quiet motivator for the team,” Barrio said. “Once she gets into her own mode and you see the saves she comes up with, it just adds to her leadership role. Her stretch and length allows her to cover the goal post-to-goal post, which is impressive.”
East Brunswick saw its perfect record come to an end, but Kevin Brady’s team attacked until the final whistle. The Bears controlled the time possession during the first half and had opportunities towards the end of the contest, but they fell just short.
“When we played last week I thought we truly struggled in the first half. I thought we did a much better job today,” Brady said. “We had four or five real chances, but we just didn’t find the net. We had an unfortunate breakdown in the back, but that’s the sport. We had one or two moments where if it goes the other way, the game is going the other way.”
Franco’s goal was the first score the East Brunswick backline has given up in a span of four games.
“It feels awesome,” Franco said. “It gives us more motivation to work harder next time. Our next game is with Piscataway at home, and they beat us last time 3-2 in double overtime, so we want to use that fire when we face them.”
Staff Writer Steven Macri: smacri@gannettnj.com