On Wednesday night, the Danvers Varsity Girls Soccer Team hosted Marblehead for their second match of the season.  Danvers won the first match, 3-2 in Marblehead.  The visitors didn't waste any time putting pressure on the Falcons.  In the span of 5 minutes, about midway through the first half, the Magician attack got behind the Danvers defense 3 times.  Junior Goalie Maddie Dembowski made a crucial save on 1 and another shot went just wide of the net.  However, the third time they broke in they were able to capitalize and Marblehead took the 1-0 lead.  It stayed that way until halftime.

 

"We struggled early.  They were playing a formation we don't see a lot and their quick forwards were a handful.  However, we felt we could certainly get back in this game."

 

13 minutes after half time the visitors did it again.  Off a cross from the left side of their offense, Marblehead scored a second goal putting Danvers in a pretty big hole.  Still with lots of time left to play, the Falcons never gave up.  Danvers was awarded 14 corner kicks throughout the game and although they were close on many, none found the back of the net.

 

"14 corners in 1 game is a lot!  We tried everything.  Their keeper was very tall and she got her hands on a lot of our serves.  She was a difference maker for them."

 

It wasn't until the 25th minute that Danvers finally got one back.  Lila Doucette played a hard ball into the box that a Magician player tried to block and inadvertently put into her own net, resulting in the goal.  This seemed to give Danvers incredible momentum and only a minute later, they tied the game.  On a set piece from about 30 yards out, sophomore Addi McCarty played a ball to Georgia Prouty instead of serving the ball into a crowd.  The pass to Prouty caught Marblehead by surprise and the junior was able to get off a great cross into the box where sophomore Liv St. Pierre shot it into the goal tying the game at 2.

 

"Coach Taylor Orlando saw that space on the field and made the girls aware of it.  Great vision on her part and great execution on the player's part.  That was a huge goal."

 

With the game tied at 2 and with the Falcons carrying the momentum, it was a matter of if there was enough time left in the game to get 1 more.  There was.  With 11 minutes to play, Prouty again brought the ball up the left side and sent a cross into Doucette.  The sophomore brought the ball down to her feet from the air and fired a perfect shot into the open end of the goal.  That score would stand and Danvers prevailed 3-2.

 

"3 goals in the last 15 minutes is pretty incredible.  It shows the players resilience and I loved that they never gave up.  We did not play a fantastic game by any standard tonight, but a win like that can really do wonders for a Team's confidence heading into the tournament.  It's good for them to know that they're never really out of any game if they keep working the entire 80 minutes.  Lila Doucette, Georgia Prouty and Liv St. Pierre all had amazing games tonight.  They really stepped up in the second half.  We also got some strong play from DeAnna Figueiredo on the wing and Skylar Laws at outside back."

 

With the win, Danvers qualified for the State Tournament for the 33rd straight year, a streak dating back to 1991 when the Team was Coached by Jerry Hills.  Danvers improved their record to 9-2-1 and next head to Boxford for a showdown with league leader Masco on Friday.