GIRLS SOCCER: Troy frustrates Anchor Bay in regional, 2-0
BY JAKE LOURIM
STUDENT CORRESPONDENT
FRASER — As a freshman, Troy midfielder Sarah Troccoli is playing in her first state tournament. That fact didn’t seem to bother her Tuesday when a cornerkick came to her.
“Sometimes, I get really nervous,” Troccoli admitted, adding that she usually feels better after her first solid touch. “Everyone on the team does a good job of calming me down.”
Troccoli scored on a corner kick and senior Irene Young added an insurance goal as Troy blanked New Baltimore Anchor Bay Tuesday, 2-0, in a girls soccer Division 1 regional semifinal at Fraser High School.
The freshman got Troy on the board in the 16th minute of the game. Senior Jenn Busk served a perfect corner kick towards the far post for Troccoli, who jumped up and headed it just inside the right post.
Both sides were fairly quiet until the 17-minute mark of the second half. Young found some space and blistered a shot off the crossbar and down into the net. Even though the Anchor Bay goalie jumped up to stop it, Young fired it just about as high as it gets without going over the bar.
Even though both of the Colts’ goals were solid, the real story of the game was their defense, which was solid again. Troy has now logged four 2-0 wins in this tournament.
“(The defenders) just made some really good decisions, both on the ball and off the ball,” Zawislak said. “We had good cover in behind. We talked about (the fact that) we need to get pressure on the ball and we need to make sure we’ve got each other’s backs. I think they did a good job of that today.”
One key for Troy was its strength. Anchor Bay, after outscoring its district opponents by a combined 20-1, pushed the ball forward, but the Colts relentlessly won balls in the open field and controlled the possession.
Though the Tars came in at 16-3-1, they came out of the Macomb Area Conference White Division, and the OAA powerhouse Colts bullied them for most of the day.
Troy was the stronger team, and they showed it by being aggressive and demanding possession without being called for fouls. The back line of Rachel Shamoun, Jenn
Busk, Jamie Hawkey, and Alyssa Cabelof was staunch again, and goalie Alison Holland commanded her box well.
In addition, tall midfielder Jenna Cabelof controlled the game from her center midfielder position and didn’t allow Anchor Bay space on the ball.
“We talked to the center mids before the game that they had to dominate the midfield, and I think they did,” Zawislak said. “They really were impressive.”
After four straight wins, Troy is once again peaking at the right time. The Colts have won their past six games by a combined 15-0 score.
“We’ve sat down, refocused ourselves,” Zawislak said. “We’ve got everyone on the same page, and now that everyone is on the same page, the snowball just keeps rolling.
“The girls are really focused and determined right now.”
Asked if he thought Tuesday was one of his team’s best defensive efforts of the year, Zawislak quickly answered “Yes.”
“We keep talking about playing with no regrets and being able to walk off the field regardless of what the result is and (saying), ‘I did all I could,’” Zawislak said. “Today, they absolutely did that.”
Troy’s playoff run continues Friday night against Grosse Pointe South at 6:30 at Fraser. The game will be a rematch of the teams’ May 12 game, which the Colts won 2-0.
(Jake Lourim is a junior at Troy High School and a member of the AdaVan Media Group / www.northoaklandsports.com Student Correspondence Program. He is publisher of website www.troycoltsportsupdate.com and a member of the Troy school newspaper editorial staff. He can be reached by e-mail at j.lourim@comcast.net)
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