2012 SEASON: MY SITE NEWS: LADY COMETS BAG WILDCATS 7-0

This past week, Wallenpaupack stretched the Lady Comets to the limits of their elasticity in a highly competitive match. However, yesterday, the team returned yet again to their more common world of one-sided soccer, as the Johnson City Wildcats (4-4) were unable to contain Abington's vigorous attack and fell by a score of 7-0 in a non-conference game.

In an effort to expand their football horizons, the Lady Comets made an out-of-state trek up to suburban Binghamton, but due to illness and injuries, they did not bring their full team. They did not need to! As in many previous games this year, Abington took control from the outset, scoring early and often. Once again, neither Alex Chapman nor Abbey Burke--two of the team's veteran starters--were able to play in this game. Reserve players Emily Bonsick and Anna Laughter were also unavailable for action. Plus, the varsity did not even have access to the full contigent of its jv "cross-over" players because the jv and varsity games were played simultaneously on separate fields. The end result is that the Lady Comets entered the game with, not merely a makeshift starting lineup, but wtih only two substitutes available on their bench.

Nevertheless, the Pennsylania girls went right after the ladies from the Empire State, striking for the first time in just the 4th minute of the match, when Izzy Clauss--who started the game in the midfield--dribbled her way through the Johnson City defense and ripped home a beautiful cross-frame shot from 15 yards out. Just a few minutes later, with only 14:22 gone from the game, Katrina Helcoski used an Ally Christman assist to power a shot into the target. Thus, by the time the scorekeeper had finished writing all of the names into the stat book, Abington was already up 2-0. There would be more first-half scoring, when with 25:53 elapsed, Clauss produced her second unassisted goal with a shot from the top of the box.

The second half of the match featured more of the same. At the 43:32 mark, Michaelina Holmes angled in on a run and hit a nice shot into the far-side netting. Abington 4, Johnson City 0. Then, in the 57th minute of game, Emma Henzes--who has recently been the recipient of several Katrina Helcoski crosses--returned the favor when, in an act of role reversal, she provided the assist for the game's second Helcoski goal. Just four minutes later, Christman added a goal to her earlier assist to rack up three points on the day. The shot materialized when she ran onto a ball that was sitting unattended 20 yards out from goal. Christman took an unimpeded windup and drilled the onion into the basket.

In an effort to keep the score in check, Coach Hunter moved his back line players forward and his forward players into the back--he finished off the game with full backs and the starting goalkeeper playing at the forward positions. But this simply provided an opportunity for other talented girls to score and at the 70:38 mark, senior Sarah Sopinski sent the ball home, stepping onto a nice little push-pass set-up from fellow-senior Melanie Coles. It was Sopinski's second varsity goal in three years as a starter. For Coles, today's helper was the fourth varsity assist of her career, but her first since the 2010 season when she was converted from field player to goalkeeper.

The girls from Johnson City managed just four shots in the match, but they did put all of them on frame. While not a scintilating offensive assault, the Wildcats' production was still better than the shot output of five other Abington opponents--including Valley View.

With the win, the Lady Comets remain unbeaten this fall. In fact, the victory extends the teams' regular-season unbeaten streak to 29 games, a trail of success that dates back to the middle of the 2010 season. The only loses for the Lady Comets during this time period, have come in post-season state playoff games.

On another note, the Lady Comets seem to be overcoming their early-season shot-accuracy issues--today, they posted their best shot-on-goal percentage of the season, reaching the very respectable .612 mark. With Scranton Prep on tap for tomorrow, the Lady Comets will need to bring all of this improvement with them into center city. So far this season, Prep has allowed zero goals. No one, including Abington in an earlier match this year, has managed to put a single ball into the back of the Classics net. Not no one, not no how, not no way!

Abington and Prep teams battled to a scoreless draw at CSE Field in the second week of the season. The big rematch, which sets the league's two best teams against each other, takes place at 4:15 at Loyola Field. The game should welcome a good crowd, a contingent from the local press, and hopefully you and 100 of your closest friends.

CLICK BELOW FOR BOX SCORE FOR JOHNSON CITY GAME