Simon’s Strikes Seal Win Over Fury
- Updated: June 23, 2012
SOMERVILLE, Mass. – The Boston Breakers extended their winning run to two games by beating the New York Fury 2-0 at Dilboy Stadium on Saturday night in front of 2,117 fans.
Kickoff was delayed 45 minutes due to thunderstorms. And while lightning didn’t strike twice, Kyah Simon did, scoring her eighth and ninth goals of the season in the win.
New York entered the match just two points behind third-place Boston in the standings. And it became clear that the Breakers had no intention of losing their third place spot in the standings to the Fury.
Heather O’Reilly, who made her first appearance in a Breakers uniform, played as a third striker alongside Simon and Kate Schoepfer. O’Reilly added some edge to the Breakers attack, making runs out of the midfield throughout the night and floating into the attack behind Simon and Schoepfer.
She nearly set up the first goal in the 33rd minute, sending a left-footed cross into the penalty area that Simon nodded toward goal. Fury goalkeeper Michelle Betos, who was off her line, managed to get a touch on the ball before it kissed off the crossbar.
Simon nailed her tally moments later in the 35th minute when she pounded a feed from Schoepfer into the back of the net.
“Whoever got that step in front, it was up to them to either hold the lead or let the other team come back,” said Simon. “It was definitely a relief to get that goal and have that relief and hold the lead.”
O’Reilly had several bids to double the lead in the second half. She shot wide of the far post on a breakaway in the 52nd minute and fired right at Betos on another breakaway in the 74th. Her closest chance to score came in second half stoppage time when she rounded Betos but had her shot on an open net blocked by Jazmyne Avant.
“I would have liked to see her get on the scoreboard today,” joked head coach Lisa Cole.
“We got the win, of course I would have liked to one of my chances,” said O’Reilly after the game.
Despite O’Reilly’s missed chances, the Breakers were able to sneak in a late goal to ensure victory. In the final minute of stoppage time, Schoepfer layed the ball off to Simon, who buried the feed off the crossbar.
The Breakers were able to dominate offensively thanks to some shrewd marking of Tobin Heath, who was supposed to be New York’s midfield engine. Marking Heath not only prevented New York from launching meaningful attacks, but also allowed for more Breakers midfielders to join in on the attack.
“You have to keep an eye on Heath, she was kind of everywhere,” said Whitehill. “She’s such an excellent player. Fortunately she had really bright cleats so I was able to see her at all time. My eye was always on her because she’s so dangerous and she’s one of the best, technically, women’s soccer players on the ball.”
The central defense combination of Taryn Hemmings and Cat Whitehill kept Heath quiet, while Alice Binns recorded her fourth shutout of the season.
“It felt good [to get the shutout] especially against a quality team, Binns played great,” said Whitehill. “We really came together tonight as a defense too. [Taryn and I] are starting to gel. The chemistry is there and she’s so freaking fast. The defense held strong, we were all at it together.”
Julian Cardillo can be reached via email at: juliancardillo@snenet.com and on twitter: @juliancardillo
About Julian Cardillo
