The St. Paul and Wolcott girls soccer teams are both 2-0-2 after Monday’s head-to-head matchup in Bristol.
While both teams remained unbeaten, each side had chances to turn a 0-0 draw into a victory. Instead, St. Paul and Wolcott each picked up its second straight tie.
Credit needs to go to the defenses and goalkeepers in each match. Falcon freshman Nina Zwolinski and Eagle junior Allie Gough were both superb in net. Each faced an onslaught at one point or another, and neither allowed a goal.
St. Paul was down Kendall Davis, who left the match in the first half with a bruised knee. At one time, the Falcons were actually down both Kendall Davis and Julia Dess. Dess went down in the second half and had to leave the field after a play where she thought she was fouled.
If anything, the short break seemed to fire Dess up. The junior made strong runs at the Wolcott net. Unfortunately for Dess, her shots were either too high or wide.
St. Paul’s task was to bottle up Wolcott senior Taylor Riviezzo. Riviezzo was often surrounded by Falcon defenders. Others tried to make runs at the St. Paul goal, but the Falcon defense was tough to crack.
There was a big opportunity for Wolcott with just over 10 minutes to play when sophomore Brooke Tracey crossed the ball to Riviezzo. The ball was a good one, and Riviezzo just missed it with her head.
Less than a minute later, Riviezzo was making a run toward the left side of the St. Paul goal. Zwolinski made a kick save with her right foot.
When Dess missed with her left foot a few minutes earlier in the match, her shot rolled to the outside of the right post.
It was that kind of a day for both sides, and it added up to another draw.
PHOTOS: Click here to see images from Monday’s match.