MAMARONECK – The seedings promised a showdown between the No. 9 and No. 8 seeds.

And a showdown it was.

No. 8 Rye Neck, relying on solid defense, edged No. 9 Irvington 1-0 Saturday in a Section 1 Class C first-round playoff game.

Rye Neck, which will likely have to score more to upset No. 1 Bronxville in Tuesday’s quarterfinals, got its game-winning goal with 7:14 left in the first half.

Freshman Emilie Cohen snuck the ball in on the left side amid traffic. Her sister Alison, a senior, got the assist.

Irvington’s Suzanne Carroll and Rye Neck’s April Zhang close in on the ball during their game at Mamaroneck High School on Saturday.

That occurred after a key stop by Rye Neck goalie Christina Shin, whose kick save to her right went just past an oncoming Bulldog.

Irvington’s Maya Pickar had seven saves and stood out in one sequence. Off one of its 12 penalty corners, Rye Neck blasted a shot high on Pickar. It caromed high off her and she batted it past several Panthers.

Irvington had many more chances than Shin’s official save count of two would indicate.

Elizabeth Segreti, with rabbit-like speed, got the ball deep into the Panthers’ defensive zone multiple times.

And Emma DeRose carried the ball through traffic and blasted long passes.

The game was quick, the ball moving fast, in part because the venue was changed from Rye Neck’s grass field, which was swamped with rain, to Mamaroneck High’s turf field.

That added speed to DeRose’s blasts but often they just missed connecting or were sometimes stopped, with Kaylee Sanabria and April Zhang providing key defense.

“Her hits were on fire this game. They were low and straight but we just couldn’t get the touch in the circle,” Bulldogs coach Danielle Weill said.

Even when the Bulldogs got the ball, they were plagued by near-misses, with shots going just wide.

“We just couldn’t finish,” Weill said, noting that had been a problem all year for her team, whose overall play far exceeded its 4-11-1 record.

Player of the game: DeRose often carried the ball herself, but on multiple occasions she came up against a brick wall in the junior Zhang.

Zhang’s defensive efforts made her player of the game.

“I was focusing on the ball. I didn’t want to over-commit. I was trying to predict where she was going,” Zhang said.

Turning point: Emilie Cohen’s goal was the game’s turning point.

Stat line: Irvington had seven penalty corners.

Quotables: “I think we played really, really well and had great passes,” said Pickar, who added of the Rye Neck score, “it shouldn’t have gone in.”

The win means Rye Neck’s five seniors will play at least one more game and that’s important to Zhang and her team.

“It could have been our seniors’ last game,” Zhang said. “We all wanted to try our hardest, especially for our seniors.”

Twitter: @HaggertyNancy

Rye Neck’s Emilie Cohen tries to get to the ball behind Irvington’s Nicole Sklitsis during their field hockey game at Mamaroneck High School, Oct. 22, 2016.

Rye Neck’s Sonia Finkenberg, Emilie Cohen and Alison Cohen, celebrate Emilie’s goal against Irvington during their field hockey game at Mamaroneck High School Saturday. Rye Neck won 1-0..

Rye Neck goalie Christina Shin stops a shot by Irvington’s Suzanne Carroll during their field hockey game at Mamaroneck High School on Saturday.

HIGH SCHOOL

FOOTBALL

Friday’s results

Clarkstown North 47, Ketcham 20

Mamaroneck 42, Fox Lane 15

Harrison 14, Panas 7

Beacon 14, Lakeland 12

Kennedy 28, St. Dominic’s 24

Ossining 42, Ramapo 12

Tappan Zee 16, Eastchester 8

Suffern 34, Greeley 14

White Plains 38, Mahopac 37

Nyack 41, Lincoln 0

Class AA quarterfinals

New Rochelle 6, Carmel 0

Arlington 20, North Rockland 13

Scarsdale 28, John Jay-East Fishkill 21

Clarkstown South 35, Spring Valley 14

Class A quarterfinals

Yorktown 28, Sleepy Hollow 13

Brewster 42, Hen Hud 28

Somers 28, Lourdes 14

Rye 34, John Jay 15

Saturday’s games

Iona Prep 28, Xavier 22

Putnam Valley 40, Briarcliff/Hamilton 0

Pearl River 34, Byram Hills 7

Stepinac 27, St. Peter’s 20

Dobbs Ferry 26, Haldane 0

Yonkers Montessori 26, Croton-Harmon 8

Woodlands 26, Bronxville 5

Rye Neck 50, Tuckahoe 16

Port Chester 29, Mount Vernon 16

Hackley 35, Riverdale 28

Irvington 20, Hastings 7

Hamden Hall 34, Rye Country Day 0

Yonkers at Palisade Prep

Harvey at Horace Mann

Class B quarterfinals

Ardsley 22, Albertus Magnus 16

Valhalla 22, Nanuet 21

Westlake 35, Blind Brook 8

Pleasantville d. Edgemont by forfeit

Hudson River Football League

Semifinals at Glover Field in Pelham:

Pelham 21, Riverside 0

No. 1 Gorton vs. No. 4 Saunders

lh logo: football

HIGH SCHOOL

Saturday’s results

Girls soccer

Rye Country Day 4, Millbrook 0

Section 1 tournament

Class AA

First round games

Mahopac 4, New Rochelle 3

Yorktown 5, Ketcham 0

Horace Greeley 2, Mamaroneck 0

Carmel 1, John Jay-EF 0

North Rockland 1, Scarsdale 0

Suffern 6, Clarkstown South 1 (OT)

Arlington 5, Port Chester 0

No. 13 Ossining at No. 4. Clarkstown South

Class A

First round games

Tappan Zee 4, Yonkers 0

Lakeland 2, Nanuet 1

Lourdes 3, Sleepy Hollow 1

John Jay 6, Ardsley 2

Somers 4, Hen Hud 0

Pearl River 3, Harrison 0

Byram Hills 1, Beacon 1 (Byram Hills wins on penalty kicks)

Rye 0, Eastchester 0 (Eastchester wins 4-2 on penalty kicks)

Class B

First round games

No. 1 Bronxville, bye

Briarcliff 3, Valhalla 3 (Briarcliff wins 4-2 on penalty kicks)

Albertus Magnus 1, Westlake 0

Croton-Harmon 4, Blind Brook 0

Pleasantville 2, Hastings 0

Putnam Valley 1, Dobbs Ferry 0

Irvington 6, Rye Neck 0

No. 10 Yonkers Montessori at No. 7 Edgemont

Field hockey

Section 1 tournament

First round

Class B

Pearl River 1, Brewster 1 (Pearl River win 3-1 on penalty strokes)

John Jay 2, Nanuet 0

No. 10 Harrison at No. 7 Pelham, late

Class C

Briarcliff 2, Putnam Valley 1

Rye Neck 1, Irvington 0

Volleyball

North Rockland at Suffern

Swimming

Conference 1 League A meet at Felix Festa M.S.

Conference 1 League B meet at White Plains

Conference 2 League A meet at Rockland CC

Conference 2 League B meet at Mt. Kisco Boys & Girls Club

Conference 3 League A meet at SUNY Purchase

Tennis

Section 1 tournament at Harrison

Sunday’s events

No events scheduled

Monday’s events

Boys soccer

Section 1 tournament

Quarterfinals

Class AA

No. 6 Horace Greeley at No. 3 Arlington, 3 p.m.

No. 10 Ossining at No. 2 Yorktown, 3 p.m.

No. 8 New Rochelle at No. 1 Mamaroneck, 6 p.m.

No. 5 Scarsdale at No. 4 Suffern, 6:30 p.m.

Class A

No. 11 Keio at No. 3 Somers, 3 p.m.

No. 8 Nanuet at No. 1 Pearl River, 3 p.m.

No. 7 Rye at No. 2 Byram Hills, 3 p.m.

No. 5 Tappan Zee at No. 4 Lakeland, 6 p.m.

Class B

No. 6 Pleasantville at No. 3 Bronxville, 2:45 p.m.

Croton-Harmon at No. 1 Rye Neck, 3 p.m.

No. 5 Valhalla at No. 3 Blind Brook, 3 p.m.

No. 10 Edgemont at No. 2 Hastings, 3 p.m.

Class C

Tuckahoe at Hamilton, 3 p.m.

Field hockey

Section 1 tournament

Class A

First round

No. 13 Ketcham at No. 4 Fox Lane

No. 12 Arlington at No. 5 Horace Greeley

No. 11 North Rockland at No. 6 Suffern

No. 10 Mahopac at No. 7 John Jay-East Fishkill

No. 9 Clarkstown North at No. 8 Ursuline

Volleyball

Saunders at Riverside, 4:15 p.m.

Roosevelt at Gorton, 4:15 p.m.

Yonkers at Lincoln, 4:15 p.m.

Albertus Magnus at Nyack, 4:15 p.m.

Tappan Zee at Pearl River, 4:15 p.m.

White Plains at New Rochelle, 4:30 p.m.

Mount Vernon at Scarsdale, 4:30 p.m.

East Ramapo at Clarkstown North, 4:30 p.m.

Lakeland at Brewster, 4:30 p.m.

Pelham at Harrison, 4:30 p.m.

Ardsley at Byram Hills, 4:30 p.m.

Dobbs Ferry at Irvington, 4:30 p.m.

Keio at Port Chester, 4:30 p.m.

Fox Lane at Hen Hud, 4:30 p.m.

Croton-Harmon at Horace Greeley, 4:30 p.m.

North Salem at Tuckahoe, 4:30 p.m.

Rye Neck at Pleasantville, 4:30 p.m.

Mahopac at Ursuline, 4:30 p.m.

Haldane at John Jay, 4:30 p.m.

Westlake at Ossining, 4:30 p.m.

Nanuet at North Rockland, 4:30 p.m.

Sleepy Hollow at Beacon, 4:45 p.m.

Somers at Panas, 6 p.m.

Rye at Eastchester, 6 p.m.

Lourdes at Peekskill, 6 p.m.

Briarcliff vs. Valhalla at Kensico School, 6 p.m.

Putnam Valley at Blind Brook, 6 p.m.

Woodlands at Hamilton, 6 p.m.

Mamaroneck at Clarkstown South, 6 p.m.

Swimming

Pearl River, Albertus Magnus vs. Tappan Zee at South Orangetown M.S., 4:30 p.m.

LH Logo: Varsity Scores And Schedules

The ladies from Yonkers Montessori Academy celebrated a 1-0 win over Edgemont in a game that went 20 penalty kicks by saluting the guy who picked them to lose today. The game is under protest, however.

We have a bit of a situation with the Yonkers Montessori win over Edgemont. The game is under protest because the officials did not read the penalty kick rules correctly.

The following is from the Section 1 handbook:

If the score remains tied after each team has had five penalty kicks:

a. Each coach will select five different players than the first five who already have kicked to take the penalty kicks in a sudden victory situation, wherein, if one team scored and the other team does not score, the game is ended without more kicks being taken.

YMA missed its sixth kick. Edgemont netted its sixth kick and should have been declared the winner. I hope to have more details in the coming day or two.

In case you didn’t read the caption, the YMA stopped to salute me for picking against them. All in good fun and taken before the protest was lodged. I’m not sure this is going to end well for them, however. The rule was in the book.

Opening round

Saturday

Class AA

No. 1 Greeley 2, No. 16 Mamaroneck 0

Goals: HG – Scout Schultz, Sophia Danyko Kulckychy.

Assist: HG – Danyko Kulckychky.

Saves: HG – Ashley Rosenberg 1. Mk – Lily Epstein 12.

Halftime: Greeley 2, Mamaroneck 0

Up next: Mahopac

No. 9 Mahopac 4, No. 8 New Rochelle 3

Goals: Ma – Carly Steinberg 2, Ellen Walpole, Morgan Kirby. NRo – Julia Zaccheria, Sabrina Salov, Sophie Wolf.

Assist: Ma – Steinberg, Ailis Martin, Sama Colatruglio. NRo – Wolf.

Saves: Ma – N/A. NRo – Canapa Fay

Up next: Greeley

No. 4. Clarkstown South 2, No. 13 Ossining 1

Goals: CS – Danielle McManus 2. O – Maya Potillo.

Assists: CS – Kelly McTigue, Fiona Cummings. O – Lola Stanisic.

Saves: CS – Elianna Murphy 5. O – Juliana Abramovich 10.

Halftime: South 2, Ossining 1

Up next: Suffern

No. 5 Suffern 6, No. 12 Clarkstown North 1 OT

Goals: Sf – Tatiana Cruz 3, Allie Goldstein, Kailey Brenner, Caleigh Cahoon. CN – Erika McCue.

Assists: Sf – Kyra Greenbaum, Julia Zendell, Allie Goldstein, Jayne Goldman.

Goalie: Sf – Cassidy Rykowski 4. CN – Jamie Polanski 12.

Halftime: N/A

Noteworthy: Cruz scored all three of her goals in the first OT session.

Up next: Clarkstown South

No. 2 Arlington 5, No. 15 Port Chester 0

Up next: North Rockland or Scarsdale

No. 7 North Rockland 1, No. 10 Scarsdale 0

Up next: Arlington

GAME STORY: Brady’s goal settles North Rockland down in win against Scarsdale

No. 3 Yorktown 5, No. 14 Ketcham 0

Goals: Yk – Ellen O’Callaghan, Ciara Frawley, Alyssa Francese 2, Ivana Pjetri.

Assists: Yk – Ivana Pjetri 2, Frawley.

Saves: Yk – Nachman 5. RCK – Laska 13.

Halftime: Yorktown 2, Ketcham 0

Up next: Carmel

No. 11 Carmel 1, No. 6 John Jay-East Fishkill 0

Up next: Yorktown

Class A

No. 1 Somers 4, No. 16 Hen Hud 0

Goals: S – Jenna Menta 2, Melina Couzis 2.

Assists: S –Jenna Menta 2, Melina Couzis.

Saves: S – Lauren Chiriboga 4. HH –  Jaelynn Smith 28.

Halftime: Somers 1, Hen Hud 0

Up next: Tappan Zee

No. 9 Tappan Zee 4, No. 8 Yonkers 0

Goals: TZ – Niamh Healy 3, Tara Harris.

Saves: TZ – Emma Chaz 7. Y – Destiny Inguanzo 12.

Halftime: Tappan Zee 1, Yonkers 0

Up next: Somers

No. 13 Lakeland 2, No. 4 Nanuet 1

Goals: Lk – Katherine Maurno, Haley Flannagan. Nt – Lauren Curry.

Assists: Lk – Maurno. Nt – Emily Dempsey.

Saves: Lk – Katelyn Heinrich 12. Nt – Megan Bourgeois 7.

Halftime: Lakeland 1, Nanuet 0.

Up next: John Jay

No.  5 John Jay 6, No. 12 Ardsley 2

Goals: JJ – Caroline Touzeau 2, Erin Walsh 2, Grace Vittoria, Kaitlyn Weis. Ar – N/A.

Assists: JJ – Willa Tobin 3, Margaret Oestreicher, Ana Dorta. Ar – N/A.

Saves: JJ – Alison Oestreicher 5. Ar – N/A.

Halftime: John Jay 4, Arlington 1

Noteworthy: Tobin had a hand in all three Indians goals in the first half. Freshman Kaitlyn Weis got her first career goal.

Up next: Lakeland

No. 15 Eastchester 1, No. 2 Rye 0 OT PK

Up next: Byram Hills

No. 10 Byram Hills 2, No. 7 Beacon 1 OT PK

Goals: BH – Sam Mayers. Be – Chloe Antalek.

Assists: BH – Kallie Hoffman.

Saves:  BH – Emma Fruhling 9. Be – Megan Meeuwisse 9.

Halftime: Byram Hills 1, Beacon 0

Up next: Eastchester

No. 19 Lourdes 3, No. 3 Sleepy Hollow 1

Up next: Pearl River

No. 6 Pearl River 5, No. 10 Harrison 0

Goals: PR – Shaelynn Guifoyle 2, Sarah Donovan, Emily Andriello, Alyssa Portington.

Assists: PR – Emily Andriello, Cate Feerick 2.

Saves: H – Katie Ryan 11. PR – Katherine Carstenson 9.

Halftime: Pearl River 3, Harrison 0

Up next: Lourdes

Class B

No. 1 Bronxville, bye

No. 9 Briarcliff 4, No. 8 Valhalla 3 OT PK

Goals: V – Juliana Corradi, Shannon Brosnan, Allison Portera. Bc – Jackie Contento, Amelia Leahy, Kelly O’Donnell.

Assists: V – Juliana Corradi, Emily Strupinsky. B – N/A.

Saves: V – Sofia Mazza 13. Bc – Khassandra Muniz 6.

Halftime: Briarcliff 2, Valhalla 1.

Up next: Bronxville

No. 4 Pleasantville 2, No. 13 Hastings 0

Goals: Pv – Lyndsey Minerva, Sydney Levine.

Assists: Pv – Erin Egan, Rachel VanSise.

Saves: Pv – Kristie Guttridge 5. Hs – Ani LeFevre 15.

Halftime: Pleasantville 0, Hastings 0

Up next: Croton

No. 5 Croton-Harmon 7, No. 12 Blind Brook 2

Goals: CH – Katie Dorn 3, Ava Robine 2, Charlotte Thornton, Grace Reyer. BB – Joie Koenig, N/A.

Assists: CH – Dorn, Reyer, Thronton, Avery Jillson.

Saves: CH – Meaghan Walsh 3. BB – Kamin Lily 15.

Halftime: Croton 2, Blind Brook 0

Up next: Pleasantville

No. 2 Irvington 6, No. 15 Rye Neck 0

Goals: I – Lindsay Halpin, Allie Pollack, Miranda Farman, Zoe Maxwell 2, Natalie Aronson.

Assists: I – Allie Pollack 2,  Zoe Maxwell, Heather Hall, Miranda Farman, Maxine Bell.

Saves: I – Rebekah Rosman 3. RN – Jessica Santoli 8.

Halftime: Irvington 5, Rye Neck 0

Up next: YMA

No. 10 Yonkers Montessori 1, No. 7 Edgemont 0 OT PK

Saves: YMA – Milagros Moye 20, Ed – Hannah Agoglia 3.

Noteworthy: Eighth-grade Geraldine Rodriguez scored on the 20th penalty kick.  The game is under protest after the officials allegedly failed to properly apply the PK rules.

Up next: Irvington

No. 3 Albertus Magnus 1, No. 14 Westlake 0

Goals: AM – Danielle LaRochelle.

Assists: AM – Morgan Adams.

Saves: AM – Kaitlyn Kreider 2. Ws – Grace O’Brien 13.

Halftime: Albertus 1, Westlake 0

Up next: Putnam Valley

No. 6 Putnam Valley 1, No. 11 Dobbs Ferry 0

Up next: Albertus

GAME STORY: Up-and-coming Putnam Valley beats Dobbs Ferry to advance in sectionals

Caleigh Carr with the Westlake High School Volleyball team, returns a shot during the Breast Cancer Awareness tournament at Hendrick Hudson High School in Montrose, Sept, 10, 2016.

lohud volleyball rankings

Week 7

1. Panas (13-0, last week: 1) — As the season comes to a close, it’s becoming even more apparent that there is not a team in Section 1 who can stop the Panthers.

2. Pawling (12-0, last week: 2) — The Tigers moved up to No. 3 in the New York State Volleyball Coaches Association state rankings for Class C after an impressive showing at Panas’ Panther Invitational last week.

3. Ossining (14-1, last week: 4) — The Pride avenged their only loss of the season by beating Yorktown in a thrilling five-set match at home. Freshman Mychael Vernon had 52 kills in the win.

4. Yorktown (14-2, last week: 3) — The Huskers’ only losses are to Panas and now Ossining, the latter of which went the distance. No reason for a drop anything beyond the No. 4 slot.

5. Ursuline (12-2, last week: 5) — After getting swept by New Rochelle earlier this season (albeit, losing by two points in each set), the Koalas took the rematch in five sets on Wednesday.

6. Hen Hud (14-3, last week: 6) — The Sailors’ regular-season finale against Fox Lane on Monday should be a terrific precursor to the Section 1 tournament later in the week.

7. Nyack (15-1, last week: 7) — The Indians will wrap up their remarkable regular season with Albertus Magnus on Monday, but must make sure they do not take the Falcons lightly after they upset Tappan Zee last week.

8. Rye (12-4, last week: 9) — The Garnets’ league — which includes Ardsley, Eastchester, Harrison, and Pelham — will have them battle-tested for sectionals.

9. Pelham (11-4, last week: 4) — The Pelicans have been back and forth with top league opponents this year — swept Ardsley, then got swept by Ardsley; lost to Rye in five, then beat Rye in five. Ultimately, whichever team goes furthest at sectionals will come down to seeding and will to win.

10. Westlake (12-4, last week: N/R) — I mistakenly left the Wildcats off the bubble last week, despite them beating Ardsley. This is just making up for past sins. It unfortunately comes after Ardsley swept Pelham last week. The Panthers (10-6) and New Rochelle (11-5) are right in the mix for this spot.

Dropped out: New Rochelle (11-5, last week: 10)

On the bubble: Ardsley, Eastchester, North Rockland, New Rochelle, Scarsdale

Eastchester celebrates after scoring a point against Harrison during a volleyball match at Harrison High School on Thursday.

Class AA — 1. Ossining, 2. Ursuline, 3. New Rochelle, 4. Scarsdale, 5. North Rockland, 6. Fox Lane, 7. Horace Greeley, 8. John Jay-East Fishkill, 9. Arlington, 10. Suffern

Class A — 1. Panas, 2. Yorktown, 3. Hen Hud, 4. Nyack, 5. Rye, 6. Pelham, 7. Eastchester, 8. Tappan Zee, 9. John Jay, 10. Harrison

Class B — 1. Westlake, 2. Ardsley, 3. Lourdes, 4. Putnam Valley, 5. Valhalla, 6. Irvington, 7. Briarcliff, 8. Nanuet, 9. Blind Brook, 10. Rye Neck

Class C — 1. Pawling, 2. Haldane, 3. Dobbs Ferry, 4. North Salem, 5. Keio

Twitter: @Zacchio_LoHud

Eastchester plays Harrison in volleyball at Harrison High School on Sept. 22, 2016.

Ursuline’s Vanessa Ciano and Laina Campos congratulate each other after winning a point during the 2016 Section 1 Tennis Tournament finals at Sound Shore Indoor Tennis in Port Chester on Sunday, Oct. 23rd, 2016.

PORT CHESTER – When conference tournaments began to start up a little over a week ago, Laina Campos and Vanessa Ciano were excited.

Not just because of the higher stakes and competition involved, but because it meant that last year’s reigning Section 1 doubles champions would be reunited again.

After playing the regular season as singles players, the sophomore pairing joined forces again for the playoffs, and capped off a perfect postseason on Sunday at the Sound Shore Indoor Tennis facility by successfully defending their sectional title with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Clarkstown North’s surprising duo of Sydney Miller and Martina Czarnik.

“It feels amazing to come back stronger and better, especially to have Vanessa by my side,” Campos said. “Our games definitely compliment each other, and we have the great mindset and positive attitude on the court.”

Having won the title last year, and also having won their conference tournament this season, the Ursuline duo came into sectionals as a heavy favorite and as the top seed in the bracket.

It was a different feeling for the two compared to last year.

“We have a lot of pressure, but we try to forget about what we accomplished last year,” Ciano said. “We just took it one match at a time.”

Campos and Ciano’s opponent in the final was not one of the other seeded teams, but instead an unseeded duo that have only been playing together for a couple of weeks.

Clarkstown North’s Sydney Miller (left) talks with doubles teammate Martina Czarnik during the 2016 Section 1 Tennis Tournament finals at Sound Shore Indoor Tennis in Port Chester on Sunday, Oct. 23rd, 2016.

Miller, a freshman, and Czarnik, a senior, themselves have been surprised at the run that they have made.

“Our first goal was just to get into counties, and then sectionals,” Czarnik said. “We’re friends outside the court, so we definitely know how to communicate and time everything. (Sydney’s) amazing, she can hit baseline and volleys and she has a great spirit, so that definitely pumps me up.”

Miller and Czarnik, who upset two seeded opponents in Saturday’s quarterfinals and semifinals in Harrison’s Jess and Sydney Saviano as well as Rye Neck’s Clemence Balzano and Alana Proudian, were the lone team from Rockland county to qualify for the tournament.

“Not a lot of people from Rockland make it this far; I know so many people, it’s been their goal forever and they finish fourth,” said Miller. “Not a lot of people make it from North, and I’m happy to do it with (Martina).”

The Campos-Ciano and Miller-Czarnik tandems will both represent Section 1 at next week’s state tournament. They will be joined by Mamaroneck’s team of Juliette Nask and Katherine Orgielewicz.

Those two, who both played the regular season as singles players, defeated Rye Neck’s Balzano and Proudian in the third-place game ?-?, ?-?.

“It is such a relief; we were put in a bad spot to begin with being the fourth seed, so we had a tough draw,” said Orgielewicz, referencing her and Miller’s loss to Campos and Ciano in the semifinals. “We’ve never played together before, we had to communicate. She always picks me up when we’re down.”

Miller, an eighth-grader and the youngest player remaining at the tournament, will continue her strong rookie season, in which she was the Tigers’ number one singles player during the regular season.

“I just hopped right in, they put me through all the JV kids, I made it all through them. They tested me out against every varsity girl and I took first singles,” Miller said. “It feels nice to win because I’m the youngest here, but it also feels nice because I haven’t played with Katherine that much, and it’s great to be going to states with her.”

The three teams that will represent Section 1 at states will return to Port Chester on Saturday, when Sound Shore Indoor Tennis will host the opening round of the tournament.

Last year, Campos and Ciano nearly made it all the way, advancing all the way to the finals before losing their last match.

The goal this coming weekend is simple: get back there and win that game.

“We’re taking it one tournament at a time, one match at a time, one point at a time,” Campos said. “We just want to focus on the moment, not the outcome. We’re going to take advantage of what we can do.”

Twitter:  @Szkolar_Lohud

Briarcliff’s Rebecca Lim hits a forehand shot during the 2016 Section 1 Tennis Tournament finals at Sound Shore Indoor Tennis in Port Chester on Sunday, Oct. 23rd, 2016.

PORT CHESTER – With so many great players in Section 1’s girls tennis tournament bracket, the expectations weren’t high for Rebecca Lim.

The Briarcliff freshman, after all, did lose to one of the seeded players, Plesantville’s Olivia Ashton, the previous week at the conference tournament.

So the mindset for Lim, who entered her first-ever sectional tournament as an unseeded player, was to just focus on playing her best.

It turned out that her best would be more than good enough.

She managed to advance all the way to Sunday’s championship match at the Sound Shore Indoor Tennis facility, where she defeated Yorktown’s Caitlin Ferrante, one of Section 1’s top players, 6-1, 6-3 in straight sets to capture an improbable title.

“It felt good, especially for my first time playing in sectionals and not being seeded,” Lim said. “I think I did pretty good.”

Along the way to the championship, Lim pulled several upsets. After defeating Rye Neck’s Lucy Friedman handily in the opening round, she shocked the tournament’s second seed, Ursuline’s Keira Tobia, in the quarterfinals with a 6-4, 7-5 win on Saturday. She followed that up with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Ashton in a rematch victory in the semifinals.

“I lost to (Ashton) in conferences even though it was a pretty close match; I just knew I had to play my best and see what happened,” Lim said. “Every match, I just kept getting better. I kept getting more consistent.”

Ferrante, who entered sectionals as the fourth seed, pulled an upset of her own to get to the final and guarantee herself a spot on Section 1’s state tournament team.

The sophomore beat her friend, Rye’s Nathalie Rodilosso, in the semifinals 1-6, 6-2, 6-1.

Yorktown’s Caitlin Ferante returns the ball on her backhand during the 2016 Section 1 Tennis Tournament finals at Sound Shore Indoor Tennis in Port Chester on Sunday, Oct. 23rd, 2016.

Rodilosso entered the tournament as the top seed having barely lost a game, let alone a set, during the regular season.

“It was a big match for me to win, and I had a lot of confidence going in,” Ferrante said of the match. “I’ve known her from USTA matches, since I was 12. She’s a nice girl.”

After her loss, Rodilosso bounced back with a 6-0, 6-1 win over Ashton in the third-place game.

Rodilosso, a senior who returned to the high school scene after a two-year period training at the John McEnroe Tennis Academy, grabbed the third and final spot on the state tournament team with the win.

“Making it to states was my goal, and even though I would have loved to win this tournament, I made the most of this match,” Rodilosso said. “I just really wanted to play for Rye senior year and be part of a team. It’s a lot more fun than all the individual junior tennis stuff and going to college, I’m going to be on a team. It’s a lot more fun having teammates there.”

Rye’s Nathalie Rodilosso returns a ball during the 2016 Section 1 Tennis Tournament finals at Sound Shore Indoor Tennis in Port Chester on Sunday, Oct. 23rd, 2016.

Lim, Ferrante and Rodilosso will all return to Port Chester next Saturday, where Sound Shore Indoor Tennis will be hosting the state tournament.

For Lim, the mindset will be the same as it was at the start of sectionals: just to do her best.

“I’m looking forward to it a lot,” Lim said. “I know the level is going to be really high, and I just have to play the way I did today, and maybe even better.”

Twitter:  @Szkolar_Lohud

It took until the final week of the regular season for it to happen, but we have our first (and only) repeat lohud volleyball player of the week for the season.

Ossining’s Mychael Vernon (6) spikes the ball during girls volleyball game against John Jay East Fishkill at Ossining High School on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 3016.

Ossining freshman Mychael Vernon, who has undoubtedly had the most eye-popping season of any lohud volleyball player this year, saved her best for last. Vernon pounded 25 kills in a sweep of Tappan Zee before following that performance up with a remarkable 52 kills in a five-set win over Yorktown a day later. The 5-foot-11 outside hitter’s numbers averaged out to 11 kills per set for the week and put her on the verge of 400 kills for the regular season, not including weekend tournament stats.

Vernon, who was named the lohud volleyball player of the week two weeks ago, now has four matches with at least 30 kills this year.

Honor Roll:

– Annemarie Horn, Scarsdale: The junior setter racked up 166 assists in three wins for the Raiders this week (Mamaroneck, 3-0; White Plains, 3-2; John Jay, 3-2). Horn also had 14 kills and seven blocks.

– Kate Mager, Albertus Magnus: The junior had 10 kills in the Falcons’ upset of Tappan Zee on Tuesday.

– Katie McLoughlin, Ursuline: The senior had 20 kills and six blocks in a five-set win over New Rochelle.

– Marie McNerney, Ardsley: The senior had 14 kills in a sweep of Pelham on Tuesday.

– Selma Vulic, New Rochelle: Vulic had 31 kills, 12 aces, and 47 digs for the Huguenots.

Twitter: @Zacchio_LoHud

Journal News/lohud.com volleyball beat reporter Mike Zacchio will pick a player of the week to be announced every Sunday. ​​This year will also include a five-player “Honor Roll,” which highlights other outstanding weeks that deserved recognition. Announcements will usually be posted at noon. Please try to submit all nominations by Saturday night (or sooner, if the team does not have a tournament/match over the weekend).

This year’s winners

Sept. 11: Madison Monahan, North Rockland (Read)

Sept. 18: Katie McLoughlin, Ursuline (Read)

Sept. 25: Rachel Darius, New Rochelle (Read)

Oct. 2: Jade Iadarola, Rye (Read)

Oct. 9: Mychael Vernon, Ossining (Read)

Oct. 16: Yvette Burcescu, Panas (Read)

Oct. 23: Mychael Vernon, Ossining

Pleasantville’s Jonathan Kyriakidis (9) celebrates scoring over Alberts Magnus during Class B boys soccer first round game action at Pleasantville High School Oct. 20, 2016. Pleasantville defeats Alberts Magnus 5-1.

It’s been a memorable high school career for Pleasantville senior Jon Kyriakidis, who has been one of the most prolific scorers in Section 1 for the past three years and entered his final Section 1 tournament with an even 50 goals as a varsity player. Out of all of the standout performances that we’ve seen from Kyriakidis over the years, Thursday’s has to jump to the top of the list.

Admittedly, my worst pick of the first round was predicting No. 11 Albertus Magnus to upset Kyriakidis and his sixth-seeded Panthers. They made me look silly with a 5-1 win, and the senior striker was at least partially responsible for four of those goals.

Kyriakidis notched a hat trick and added an assist on Liam Perrine’s goal, which my colleague Nancy Haggerty deemed as the goal which “changed the game.”

In what could have been his final high school game, Kyriakidis put the team on his back and willed them to a statement win. That’s why he’s the latest #lohudsoccer Player of the Week.

“Jon K puts so much pressure on himself to be a leader and impactful on both sides of the ball since his freshman year,” said Pleasantville coach and Jon’s father Savvas Kyriakidis. “Three weeks ago, he played in the Valhalla game with a 103 temp, body shakes and the chills. One day later, he ended up in the hospital for five days with low blood counts. He missed a couple of games and returned to the lineup far below 100 percent, but refused to take shorter shifts. He felt back to normal for the first round of sectionals.”

Others who were considered this week included Suffern’s Zac Lloyd, Edgemont’s Zach Stern, Ossining’s Nolan Lenaghan, Yorktown’s Enzo Sangiacomo, Greeley’s Jonny Gerstein, Eastchester’s Luca Fava, Clarkstown South’s Zach Gloskin, New Rochelle’s Harwan Alzuabidi, Valhalla’s Ricky Thomas, Nanuet’s Nick Iozzo, Riverside’s Esad Mackic, Byram’s Jack Beer, Sleepy Hollow’s Manuel Crespo and Tappan Zee’s Jack Samett.

Previous #lohudsoccer Players of the Week:

• Sept. 5-11: Bronxville’s Jeb Burnell
• Sept. 12-18: Yorktown’s Joey Landicino
• Sept. 19-25: Byram Hills’ Jack Beer
• Sept. 26-Oct. 2: Tappan Zee’s Jorge Umana
• Oct. 3-Oct. 9: Nanuet’s Matt Wain
• Oct. 10-16: Hastings’ Oscar Pereira

NOTE TO COACHES: I’ll be taking nominations for the #lohudsoccer Player of the Week for the rest of the season. Please email me at vmercoglia@lohud.com every Sunday with stats for the player that you’d like us to consider. Any games from Monday-Sunday should be mentioned. 

Twitter: @vzmercogliano

Scarsdale’s Barry Klein hands off to Nick Leone during Friday’s game against John Jay High School.

Four weeks prior to last Friday’s program-defining win at John Jay-East Fishkill, Scarsdale and Barry Klein had a moment to dread. The Raiders had rolled up 49 first-half points in what appeared to be a blowout win over rival White Plains, but the Tigers kept playing in the second half and Scarsdale made enough mistakes that coach Andy Verboys inserted his quarterback back into the game.

During a broken play in the third quarter, Klein took off running toward his sideline. He was grabbed, spun and thrown to the ground by a defender. Klein landed on his left wrist and suffered a radius fracture and dislocation.

“I thought I was done for the year,” he said.

SCHEDULE: Complete Section 1 football playoff schedule

Instead, Klein missed a game, sat most of another, and has had to completely change how he takes snaps under center. Despite those challenges and what can be intense pain, the senior is back. He proved it, guiding Scarsdale on three scoring drives in four possessions to lead his team to arguably its best win in Andy Verboys’ 11 years as coach.

The fifth-seeded Raiders will head back to Dutchess and visit No. 1 Arlington at 6 Saturday night. It’s a prime chance to qualify for their first Section 1 championship game in the state-playoff era (1993-present).

“John Jay is a team that we have not been able to beat,” said Verboys, whose team reached the Class AA semifinals for the second straight year. “So, yeah, I would put it up there at the top.”

Scarsdale had to overcome a physical disadvantage at the line of scrimmage, but the offensive and defensive lines held their own against Section 1’s most physical team. Despite wearing a brace on his wrist, Klein was also key, making decisive reads in the team’s option offense.

On the go-ahead drive in the fourth quarter, Klein completed a 66-yard pass to tight end Robert Keith that helped set up a 1-yard keeper for the winning score.

“I think it was a great team win,” Klein said. “We’re on to Arlington now and we’re going to have a great week of practice.”

And maybe a new winning plan. Because of the long bus ride, Verboys scheduled the team for a pregame workout at THE FIELD, an indoor sports complex in Poughkeepsie.

“It was about letting the kids get their cobwebs out,” he said, “and I think it was successful.”

Mahopac to host championships again — for now: After a year hiatus, all five Section 1 championship games will return to Mahopac High School on Nov. 4-5. The Class D and C finals will be held at 4 and 7, respectively, on Nov. 4. The Class AA, B and A finals are scheduled for 12, 3:30 and 7, respectively, on Nov. 5.

Section 1 had held almost all of their football championships at Mahopac from 2002-14 before the games were moved from there last year. Football chairman Chuck Scarpulla said at the time the decision was made because of the recent history of high-profile racially-charged incidents that had involved Mahopac’s teams.

On Monday, Section 1 executive director Jennifer Simmons said there was more to the decision. The coaches have expressed interest in trying to find a bigger, different venue. One was chosen last year, Dutchess Stadium, but the playing field was deemed unsafe just five days prior to the Class AA, A and B finals. That forced the three games to be played at different venues.

“We again tried to get a bigger venue this fall, but were unsuccessful in securing one for this year,” Simmons said. “Mahopac agreed and applied to be the host once again and we agreed. The coaches association and football committee are working on securing possible sites for the future.”

Brewster’s Jack Guida earned Player of the Week honors after scoring four touchdowns in a 42-28 win over Hen Hud in the Class A quarterfinals at Brewster High School Oct. 21, 2016.

Week 8 Player of the Week: Jack Guida, Brewster. His Class A brethren from Yorktown (Brett Makar) and Somers (Messiah Horne) made a strong case as well, but Guida shined during his team’s 42-28 win over Hen Hud in the Class A quarterfinals. The Super 11 senior rushed 28 times for 228 yards and four touchdowns, including a can-you-believe-it 66-yarder where he rolled over a defender and kept running without his knee touching the ground. Guida also kept busy on defense and helped extinguish Hen Hud’s last-ditch effort with an interception. The Ivy League recruit now has 1,368 yards and 23 touchdowns on the ground for the 8-0 Bears.

CLASS A QUARTERFINALS: Jack Guida and Brewster run past Hen Hud again

Valhalla coach Steve Boyer, pictured during a game at Valhalla High School on Oct. 14, 2016, was named the Coach of the Week after beating Nanuet 22-21.

Week 8 Coach of the Week: Steve Boyer, Valhalla. Boyer’s team seemed to teeter on the brink all afternoon with its offense regularly backed up to the Nanuet goal line. But his Vikings managed the situation with care, then rallied after Nanuet went ahead 21-14 with 3:32 to play. Quarterback Ralph Gonzalez engineered a 15-play, 81-yard drive that was capped by Kevin Williams’ 9-yard touchdown catch on fourth down with 24 seconds remaining. Boyer then made the bold call to go for the two-point conversion and it paid dividends when Gonzalez found fullback Evan Parker for the go-ahead score. No. 6 Valhalla needed every minute and every yard to beat No. 3 Nanuet 22-21 in the classic Class B quarterfinal.

CLASS B QUARTERFINALS: Dramatic final drive gives Valhalla last-second victory

Twitter: @lohudinsider

Yonkers Montessori Academy celebrated what they believed to be a 1-0 win over Edgemont in a Section 1 Class B playoff game that went 20 penalty kicks by saluting the people who picked them to lose.

For a couple of hours, it was a really good story.

Yonkers Montessori Academy went into the Section 1 girls soccer tournament a decided underdog. The Eagles do not have the advantage of a modified or junior varsity and had never won a playoff game.

They held on for 110 minutes under the lights Saturday at Edgemont, which had a 25-3 advantage in shots on goal.

Nobody scored in regulation and overtime, so the sides lined up for penalty kicks. Each team selected five players to shoot. Each team netted a pair of penalty kicks.

Tears were already flowing.

After huddling for a moment, the officials instructed the sides to pick five different players for another set of five penalty kicks. It’s a move that was immediately questioned by Edgemont coach Darren Hawks and YMA coach Marc Aliberti, who eventually complied.

Like any more drama was needed.

It was 2-2 after each team took four penalty kicks. Yonkers Montessori keeper Milagros Moye turned away Edgemont’s last chance, then Geraldine Rodriguez stepped up and won the game.

By the way, she’s in the eighth grade.

“I’m so proud of these kids,” a hoarse and breathless Aliberti said shortly after his team posed for a tongues-out salute to the prognosticators.

Not so fast.

Those exact three words appeared on the Twitter account of Rich Leaf, the president of the Westchester-Putnam Soccer Approved Soccer Officials Association who had been following along from his Somers home via social media updates.

Phones began to ring.

The officials did not adhere to the procedure for a second round of penalty kicks that is published in the Section 1 handbook for girls soccer. After the first round, the format shifts to sudden victory. Each coach picks five new players to participate. If the first shooter nets the penalty kick, the opposition gets a shot to extend the process. If there is no goal, the game is over.

“We spend a lot of time going over these rules and there is no excuse for this happening,” Leaf said. “I feel badly for both teams because the girls were put on an emotional roller coaster.”

There was a referee meeting last Wednesday and the rules and procedures for the Section 1 tournament were reviewed.

Edgemont athletic director Anthony DeRosa was in the press box running the scoreboard and read the rules from the handbook before the overtime and the penalty kicks over the PA.

“I was definitely surprised when they had five players taking penalty kicks in the second round,” he said. “I went down afterward just to get clarification. … I did speak with the referees, but I did not say I was going to protest.”

Neither did Hawks.

“I received a call from Rich Leaf a little while later,” DeRosa said. “He was very apologetic. He advised me to get in touch with (Section 1 executive director) Jen Simmons and pursue a protest.”

The folks at YMA see that as a conflict of interest.

“No protest was filed on the field,” said Jim Rose, the director of health, physical education and athletics for the Yonkers Public Schools. “They did not file a protest according to the procedure listed in the handbook.”

At best, the protest rules were only loosely followed, in part to expedite a ruling.

“This protest happened on the field with both coaches disagreeing with the officials,” Simmons wrote in an email. “The officials overruled them, unfortunately, even after the AD had already read the rules over the PA. I was notified immediately of the protest over the process at the conclusion.

“During the post season, the protest is taken to the committee, which is the head of the officials’ association, the sport chair (Nanuet AD Frank Mazzuca) and myself. Once I conferred with those two and the AD’s from each school, the decision was made. The officials were correct with the OT process and the first round of penalty kicks. Unfortunately, the second round of PK’s are sudden victory. YMA missed. Edgemont scored. The game should have ended immediately.  Anything after does not count.”

Here’s my sticking point: The error was not made after each team completed the first penalty kick in the second round.

When the officials dictated that both schools would take another set of five PKs, they established context. Aliberti decided to have the best remaining athletes on the YMA roster shoot third, fourth and fifth.

All three of them were successful.

Credit for the deciding penalty kick belongs to Edgemont junior Sydney Gaviser.

Simmons also consulted with NYSPHSAA executive director Robert Zayas late Saturday before issuing the ruling, which by rule cannot be appealed.

There is a common sense answer: Line up before the quarterfinals get under way on Tuesday and start the second round of penalty kicks over under the proper Section 1 rules.

“When that sixth kick took place, the game was over,” Zayas said. “If you bring those teams back and redo the penalty kicks, what do you do the next time another official fails to properly apply a rule? The precedent established when you replay something is difficult to maintain.”

Agreed.

The last thing we need is parents arming lawyers with video of uncalled hand-balls in the box and creating absolute chaos.

Still, this is a terrible way to end a season.

The administration in Yonkers did reach out to the full girls soccer committee on Monday, but there was no discussion of lining up to redo the PKs.

“We’ve already started the healing process,” Aliberti said. “The girls are moving on and wishing Edgemont and their coach the best of luck. This is the definition of a moral victory.”

So at the very least, the referees involved need to bring the playoff opponents back together in the next week or so and use their game checks to buy forgiveness. The girls at YMA wouldn’t mind taking another trip up Central Park Avenue for wings at the Candlelight Inn.

Twitter:  @hoopsmbd

Pearl River beat Nanuet 2-1 in overtime of a Class A boys soccer quarterfinal at Pear River Oct. 24, 2016.

PEARL RIVER – The season was slipping away for the defending Class A champs, and they could feel it.

Few were expecting top-seeded Pearl River to run into trouble in Monday’s quarterfinal against eighth-seeded Nanuet, especially considering that the Golden Knights hadn’t beaten the Pirates since 2004. But with Pearl River trailing by one with under five minutes left to play, it was impossible to escape the magnitude of the moment.

“Absolutely,” senior Craig MacDonald said when asked if it dawned on him that this could be his final high school game. “We talked about it before the game, and as soon as they put one in, I know the seniors felt it. We all knew the situation.”

CLASS AA QUARTERFINALS: Novaes continues hot streak as Scarsdale advances

CLASS A QUARTERFINALS: One year later, trio leads Lakeland to quarterfinal win

QUARTERFINALS ROUNDUP: Ossining upsets Yorktown

With just 4:14 standing between the Pirates and a devastating loss, Christian Madigan back-heeled in the tying goal to force overtime and stave off elimination. After 101 minutes of play, it was MacDonald booting in a right-footed goal from 15 yards out to give Pearl River an unforgettable 2-1 win.

“The ball was bouncing around in there, and I think Denis (Fleming) and Francesco (Galvano) were in there,” MacDonald said. “The ball popped up, and I’m hearing, ‘Shoot!,’ from everyone on the sidelines. It was awesome.”

76 min: Holy moly. This corner kick from Francesco Galvano finds Christian Madigan, who ties it 1-1. PR is still al… twitter.com/i/web/status/7…

—
Vince Z. Mercogliano (@vzmercogliano) October 24, 2016

It was stunning that the Pirates didn’t score in the first half. They put eight shots on goal compared to just one from Nanuet, but goalkeeper Dan O’Sullivan was outstanding for the Knights.

Nanuet made some key adjustments at halftime and got a quick goal from Chris Fisher in the 44th minute, proving that it was one of the most improved teams in Section 1 this season.

“I knew they were going to play us hard,” Madigan said. “Our two schools are in towns right next to each other, so it’s a helluva rivalry in every sport. I just knew they were going to give it their all. Their program has improved so much just over the past three years since I’ve been here, and it’s great to see. Rockland County soccer is getting a lot better.”

Player of the game: Craig MacDonald, Pearl River — Before coming up with the winning goal, MacDonald was robbed a few times by Bilein. He was a pest for the Knights to deal with from start-to-finish.

“I knew he was going to come through,” Madigan said. “Him and Kevin (Doorley) both come up clutch all of the time. They’re two great players, and I just knew one of them was going to put one in to end it.”

Turning point: Nanuet had seized all momentum after Fisher’s goal and held the Pirates’ offense in check for most of the second half, but Madigan’s goal off of Galvano’s corner kick changed everything.

Stat line: Pearl River (14-2-2) — Madigan and MacDonald scored on assists from Galvano and Dara Donnelly. Dolan Ocasal made eight saves and the Pirates took 21 shots. Nanuet (13-5-1) — Fisher scored on an assist from Matt Wien, while O’Sullivan made 13 saves. The Knights took 16 shots.

Quotable: “We were dominating the game, but they definitely played better in the second half,” Madigan said. “I just knew that we had to get one lucky bounce and put the ball in. Then, it was anyone’s game.”

Twitter:  @vzmercogliano

Nanuet’s Nick Iozzo flies over Pearl River’s Timmy Valentine during their Class A boys soccer quarterfinal at Pear River Oct. 24, 2016. Pearl River won 2-1 in overtime.

Pearl River’s Dara Donnelly, left, fights for the ball with Nanuet’s Nick Iozzo during their Class A boys soccer quarterfinal at Pear River Oct. 24, 2016. Pearl River won 2-1 in overtime. 6 23

Pearl River’s Kevin Doorley is pressured by Nanuet’s Thomas Ryan during their Class A boys soccer quarterfinal at Pear River Oct. 24, 2016. Pearl River won 2-1 in overtime. 6 23

SHRUB OAK – A year ago in this same round, Nick Foci and Jordan Fein missed Lakeland’s quarterfinal loss to Eastchester. Matias Prando played, but barely, estimating he was at half strength at the time.

The trio returned this season and left a major imprint on the Hornets’ Class A quarterfinal victory. In fact, Prando and Foci provided the goals for fourth-seeded Lakeland, which beat fifth-seeded Tappan Zee 2-1 on the strength of a furious comeback.

“Missing last year was one of the worst things that happened to us,” said Foci, who buried a cross from Kadri Haluci in the 72nd minute for the winner. “We knew we had one last chance at it. That wasn’t our senior year. Now we’re just going to give it our best chance and try to win it all.”

Foci, Fein and Prando were all injured in a car accident just prior to the playoffs. Foci suffered the worst injuries, including bleeding on the brain. He and Fein, who had a concussion, missed both rounds while Prando had stitches removed just before returning for the quarterfinals.

All three were at full strength Monday, but the Hornets faced a stiff test from last year’s Class A runner-up anyway. Tappan Zee had the better chances early and went in front on a long blast by Kyle Shavey just 11:09 into the game.

CLASS AA QUARTERFINALS: Novaes continues hot streak as Scarsdale advances

CLASS A QUARTERFINALS:  Pearl River survives OT thriller against Nanuet

QUARTERFINALS ROUNDUP: Ossining upsets Yorktown

They maintained that lead thanks to the aggressive brilliance of Connor Callen, but the goalkeper faced more frequent danger after Lakeland added a third forward in the second half. The Hornets were determined to attack on the wings rather than challenge Tappan Zee’s Joseph Stahl in the middle.

“Both of our goals came off service from the wing,” said Lakeland coach Tim Hourihan, whose team will travel to No. 1 Pearl River in Wednesday’s quarterfinals. “I think adding a forward created more width for us and more chances, for sure.”

The strategy required patience, but finally Foci found Prando for the tying goal in the 64th minute.

“I thought we needed that for more confidence,” said Prando, who was also involved in the winning goal. “It helped us gain the momentum.”

Lakeland finished with a flurry of energy that finally culminated in Foci’s winner. Tappan Zee rarely had the ball deep in the Hornets’ end in the subsequent minutes.

Nick Estrella finished with 10 saves for the Hornets.

Player of the game: Matias Prando, Lakeland. In addition to the tying goal, Prando also generated the winning chance with a through ball to Foci.

“He started to impose his will and put a stamp on the game, to say the least,” Tappan Zee coach Jon Jacobs said.

Quotable: “He was definitely our man of the match,” Jacobs said of Callen, who made five saves.

Twitter:  @lohudinsider

Soccer ball on grass

SUFFERN – The timing for Luca Novaes couldn’t be any better.

Scarsdale’s junior forward has been on a scoring tear in the last few weeks, giving the Raiders the go-to option that they had been searching for throughout the regular season. He kept the hot streak going on Monday, scoring the winning goal and assisting on the other in fifth-seeded Scarsdale’s 2-1 win over fourth-seeded Suffern in the Class AA quarterfinals.

“It comes from the heart,” Novaes said. “It’s helped take my team to the next level. Five out of five (games) now (with a goal). I don’t know what happened, but I felt that the team needed it. I’m doing my part.”

CLASS A QUARTERFINALS: Pearl River survives OT thriller against Nanuet

CLASS A QUARTERFINALS: One year later, trio leads Lakeland to quarterfinal win

QUARTERFINALS ROUNDUP: Ossining upsets Yorktown

Novaes helped the Raiders get off to a fast start, finding Chris Gaujean in the second minute for a 1-0 lead. The Mounties responded with a goal from Myles Solan to equalize in the 16th minute, but Novaes provided the fatal blow in the second half.

He received a pass from Owen Hall in the 65th minute and buried it, making it five consecutive games with a goal for the skilled striker.

“The ball was played wide, and then (Hall) just followed the principle with a low cross,” Novaes said. “The ball bounced my way and I just hit it.”

The win sets up a showdown with league rival New Rochelle in the semifinals on Wednesday after the eighth-seeded Huguenots upset top-seeded Mamaroneck.

Scarsdale beat New Rochelle once during the regular season and tied in the second meeting.

“It’s going to be a hard challenge we both know each other very well, so it’s going to be a battle,” Novaes said. “It should be a good game.”

Player of the game: Luca Novaes, Scarsdale — Even with the Suffern defense paying close attention to him, the junior showed his ability to hold the ball, find his teammates and finish.

“In the beginning of the year, he was playing well, he just wasn’t really finding the back of the net,” senior Michael Spiro said. “At the time that we really needed him to pick it up, he’s definitely been stepping it up. He’s had five goals in the last five games, and a bunch of assists.”

Turning point: Novaes’ goal was the decisive blow, and the Raiders followed it up by withstanding a big push from the Mounties for the equalizer. Senior goalkeeper Kyle Koslowsky made a few clutch saves down the stretch.

Stat line: Scarsdale (9-4-2) — Novaes had a goal and an assist, Gaujean scored and Hall had an assist. Koslowsky made seven saves. Suffern (12-3-2) — Solan scored and Matt Stuttman made six saves.

Quotable: “Suffern is a very a good attacking team, so I really felt that they were going to get another (goal) and we needed to keep pushing forward,” Spiro said. “We sat back a bit and they got one, but luckily in the end we were able to pull through and get a second.”

Twitter: @vzmercogliano

Scarsdale celebrates after a goal from Luca Novaes (10) in the first half of Tuesday’s sectional quarterfinal game against Suffern.

Suffern’s Harrison Dranoff, left, is pressured by Scarsdale’s Michael Spiro during their Class AA boys soccer quarterfinal at Suffern Oct. 24, 2016.

Scarsdale’s Fayez Merchant, left, goes up for the ball with Suffern’s Harrison Dranoff during their Class AA boys soccer quarterfinal at Suffern Oct. 24, 2016.

Scarsdale’s Fayez Merchant, left, battles for the ball with Suffern’s Harrison Dranoff during their Class AA boys soccer quarterfinal at Suffern Oct. 24, 2016.

Scarsdale’s Kyle Stern, left, fights for the ball with Suffern’s Roland Blankson during their Class AA boys soccer quarterfinal at Suffern Oct. 24, 2016.

Scarsdale won 2-1 in a Class AA boys soccer quarterfinal at Suffern Oct. 24, 2016.

There’s only one double-digit seed still alive in the Section 1 boys soccer playoffs, and it’s the Pride of Ossining High.

The 10th-seeded Pride kept their Cinderella run going on Monday with a 2-1 win over No. 2 Yorktown in the Class AA quarterfinals, with freshman Nolan Lenaghan notching both goals.

The first came in the 68th minute to tie the game at 1-1 and the winner came with less than one minute to play.

“Today’s game proved the quality of players we have coming up within our soccer programs, as our team’s only freshman scored both goals,” coach Joe Scamarone said. “There was a big mental aspect to the game for us, knowing we had been beaten twice by Yorktown in regular season play. We had control of the first 20 minutes of the game, but their attack from Joey (Landicino) and Enzo (Sangiacomo) was always dangerous.”

Miguel Marra and Darwin Quinde had the assists on Lenaghan’s goals. Landicino scored on an assist from Adam Romanski for the Huskers in the 28th minute.

Ossining will play at No. 3 Arlington in the semifinals on Wednesday.

Class AA

Scarsdale 2, Suffern 1: At No. 4 Suffern, Luca Novaes had a goal and an assist and Chris Gaujean also scored. The fifth-seeded Raiders will host No. 8 New Rochelle in the semis on Wednesday.

CLICK HERE to read my story on Novaes scoring for the fifth straight game

CLICK HERE to watch video highlights

CLICK HERE to view Peter Carr’s photo gallery

New Rochelle 1, Mamaroneck 1, 2 OT: At No. 1 Mamaroneck, the Huguenots advanced on penalty kicks, 4-3, with Felipe Tobin scoring the decisive PK. Javier Amezcua put New Ro up 1-0 with a goal in the 46th minute and Alex Alma equalized for the Tigers in the 69th.

Arlington 0, Horace Greeley 0, 2 OT: At No. 3 Arlington, the Admirals advanced on penalty kicks, 5-4.

Class A

Pearl River 2, Nanuet 1, 2 OT: At No. 1 Pearl River, Craig MacDonald scored the winner after Christian Madigan equalized in the 76th minute. The Pirates will host No. 4 Lakeland in the semis on Wednesday.

CLICK HERE to read my story on the Pirates nearly getting upset by a much-improved Nanuet team

CLICK HERE to watch video highlights

CLICK HERE to view Peter Carr’s photo gallery

Lakeland 2, Tappan Zee 1: At No. 4 Lakeland, Nick Foci scored the winner in the 72nd minute after Matias Prando equalized in the 64th.

CLICK HERE to read Josh Thomson’s story on Foci, Prando and Jordan Fein pushing the Hornets to the semis

Byram Hills 1, Rye 0: At No. 2 Byram, Max Hammond scored with eight minutes left and Matt Groll made three saves for the shutout. The Bobcats will host No. 3 Somers in the semis on Wednesday.

Somers 2, Keio 1: At No. 3 Somers, Jack Maher scored both goals for the Tuskers.

Class B

Rye Neck 1, Croton-Harmon 0: At No. 1 Rye Neck, Jon Cass scored on an assist from Donovan Dunning and Tom Bermingham made five saves for the shutout. The Panthers will host No. 4 Blind Brook in the semis on Wednesday.

Blind Brook 1, Valhalla 0: At No. 4 Blind Brook, Joao Souza in the 10th minute on an assist from Zach Kornblum and Jordan Schoen made five saves for the shutout.

Hastings 3, Edgemont 2, OT: At No. 2 Hastings, Alex Bourgeois scored the equalizer on a free kick with eight minutes to play and Jackson Silverstein scored the winner. Oscar Pereira also scored for the Yellow Jackets and Stefano Ballas and Zach Stern each scored for the 10th-seeded Panthers. Hastings will host No. 3 Bronxville in the semis on Wednesday.

Bronxville 2, Pleasantville 1: At No. 3 Bronxville, Alston Tarry scored the winner in the 65th minute on an assist from Jeb Burnell. James Grom scored for the sixth-seeded Panthers just before halftime for a 1-0 lead.

Class C

Hamilton 3, Tuckahoe 2: At No. 4 Hamilton, Luis Rodriguez scored twice and Adrian Tascon had a goal and an assist. The Red Raiders will play at No. 1 North Salem in the semis on Wednesday.

Twitter:  @vzmercogliano

Field hockey recaps from October 24, 2016

A game between a No. 5 seed and a No. 12 seed might seem to be a likely blowout.

But that wasn’t the case Monday as host Horace Greeley just edged lower-seeded Arlington 1-0 in a first-round Class A game behind Lauren Rosh’s first-half goal, which came off of one of the Quakers’ six penalty corners.

Fiona Grant took the corner feed at the top of the circle and fired the ball toward the goal, where Rosh tipped it past keeper Sophie Fister, who had six saves for the 12th-seeded Admirals.

Despite the close score, Horace Greeley coach Sukhi Sandhu said, “We kept them down on their side.”

Arlington had three corners and put only three shots on Greeley goalie Willa Kuhn.

The 12-5 Quakers will play fourth-seeded Fox Lane Thursday at Fox Lane.

The Foxes beat Greeley 2-1 during the regular season, scoring in the last five minutes of the game.

Sandhu, who said he had one player playing sick that game, said both squads had their chances and said his team and Fox Lane are “almost equal teams.”

He predicts a close game, saying the win will likely go to the team that takes advantage of a mistake. Sophie Fister had six saves for No. 12 Arlington.

Class A

Fox Lane 6, Ketcham 0: In a Class A first-round game at No. 4 Fox Lane, both Kayla Gallagher and Olivia Dey registered hat tricks. Natalie Bazyk had two assists.

Kristin DeSousa had six saves for No. 13 Ketcham.

Grace Kiernan had six saves for Fox Lane.

Clarkstown North 3, Ursuline 0: In a Class A first-round game at No. 8 Ursuline, Maris Daly scored twice and Maureen Donegan once.

No. 9 Clarkstown North will play in the Class A quarterfinals Thursday at No. 1 Mamaroneck.

Suffern 5, North Rockland 1: In a Class A first-round game at No. 6 Suffern, Kaity Gannon and Kim Kaufman both scored twice and Sophie Jay also had a goal.

Kerri Gutenberger scored for No. 11 North Rockland.

North Rockland goalie Megan Mallozzi had nine saves. Alyssa Sanchez stopped five shots for Suffern, which will play in the Class A quarterfinals at No. 3 Clarkstown South Thursday.

Mahopac 1, John Jay-East Fishkill 0: In a Class A first-round game played at No. 7 John Jay-EF, the No. 10 Indians won to advance to play No. 2 Scardale Thursday in a Class A quarterfinal game..

Private schools

Holy Child 3 Greens Farm Academy 1: In Fairchester League action, three players scored for Holy Child.

Molly Mackie opened the scoring on a breakaway.

Francesca DeVita tied the score before the half off a scramble in front of the Hackley net.

But a beautiful crossing pass by Maddie Lyons led to a Martina Garate-Griot tip-in and Lila Pfohl’s goal iced the game.

Nikki Farber had seven saves for Greenwich Farms. Charlotte Wertimer had five saves for the Hornets.

King 3, Hackley 1: Hackley’s Jenny Canoni had 21 saves but Sam Falcon had two goals and Jane Tully had a goal and an assist for King.

Karina Bridger scored off a Catherine Meyer assist for the Hornets.

Aimee Madigan stopped seven shots for King.

Twitter: @HaggertyNancy

HIGH SCHOOL

LH Logo: Varsity Scores And Schedules

Monday’s results

Boys soccer

Section 1 tournament

Quarterfinals

Class AA

Arlington 0, Horace Greeley 0 (Arlington wins 5-4 in penalty kicks)

Ossining 2, Yorktown 1

Scarsdale 2, Suffern 1

Mamaroneck 1, New Rochelle 1 (New Rochelle won 4-3 in penaly kicks)

Class A

Somers 2, Keio 1

Pearl River 2, Nanuet 1 (2 OT)

Byram HIlls 1, Rye 0

Lakeland 2, Tappan Zee 1

Class B

Rye Neck 1, Croton-Harmon 0

Hastings 3, Edgemont 2 (OT)

Bronxville 2, Pleasantville 1

Blind Brook 1, Valhalla 0

Class C

Hamilton 3, Tuckahoe 2

Girls soccer

Holy Child 2, Hackley 1

Section 1 tournament

Field hockey

Holy Child 3, Greens Farms Academy 1

Hopkins 2, Rye Country Day 1

King 3, Hackley 1

Section 1 tournament

Class A

First round

Fox Lane 6, Ketcham 0

Suffern 5, North Rockland 1

Clarkstown North 3, Ursuline 0

Horace Greeley 1, Arlington 0

Mahopac 1, John Jay-EF 0

Volleyball

Saunders 3, Riverside 0

Dobbs Ferry 3, Irvington 1

Ursuline 3, Mahopac 0

Nyack 3, Albertus Magnus 0

Kennedy 3, Spellman 0

Horace Greeley 3, Croton-Harmon 0

Lourdes 3, Peekskill 1

North Rockland 3, Nanuet 0

Briarcliff 3, Valhalla 2

Ardsley 3, Byram Hills 0

Hen Hud 3, Fox Lane 0

Rye 3, Eastchester 0

Putnam Valley 3, Blind Brook 2

Clarkstown South 3, Mamaroneck 2

Tappan Zee 3, Pearl River 1

New Rochelle 3, White Plains 0

Ossining 3, Westlake 2

Brewster 3, Lakeland 0

Roosevelt at Gorton

Yonkers at Lincoln

Mount Vernon at Scarsdale

East Ramapo at Clarkstown North

Pelham at Harrison

Keio at Port Chester

North Salem at Tuckahoe

Rye Neck at Pleasantville

Haldane at John Jay

Sleepy Hollow at Beacon

Somers at Panas

Woodlands at Hamilton

Tuesday’s events

Girls soccer

Section 1 tournament

Class AA

No. 9 Mahopac at No. 1 Greeley, 3 p.m.

No. 7 North Rockland at No. 2 Arlington, 3 p.m.

No. 11 Carmel at No. 3 Yorktown, 3 p.m.

No. 5 Suffern at No. 4 Clarkstown South, 4 p.m.

Class A

No. 15 Eastchester at No. 10 Byram Hills, 3 p.m.

No. 19 Lourdes at No. No. 6 Pearl River, 3 p.m.

No. 13 Lakeland at No. 5 John Jay, 4:15 p.m.

No. 9 Tappan Zee at No. 1 Somers, 4:30 p.m.

Class B

No. 9 Briarcliff at No. 1 Bronxville, 1:30 p.m.

No. 5 Croton-Harmon at No. 4 Pleasantville, 3 p.m.

No. 7 Edgemont at No. 2 Irvington, 3 p.m.

No. 6 Putnam Valley at No. 3 Albertus Magnus, 3 p.m.

Class C

No. 5 Hamilton at No. 4 North Salem 3 p.m.

Field hockey

Section 1 tournament

Class C

Quarterfinals

No. 6 Pleasantville at No. 3 Valhalla, 3 p.m.

No. 5 Pawling at No. 4 North Salem, 3 p.m.,

No. 8 Rye Neck at No. 1 Bronxville, 3:30 p.m.

No. 7 Briarcliff at No. 2 Croton-Harmon, 3 p.m.

Boys volleyball

Suffern at Scarsdale, 5:30 p.m.

Clarkstown South at Clarkstown North, 5:30 p.m.

Cross country

Keio at Blind Brook, 4:15 p.m.

Wednesday’s events

Boys soccer

Section 1 tournament

Semifinals

Class AA

No. 10 Ossining at No. 3 Arlington, 3 p.m.

No. 8 New Rochelle at No. 5 Scarsdale, 3 p.m.

Class A

No. 3 Somers at No. 2 Byram Hills, 3 p.m.

No. 4 Lakeland at No. 1 Pearl River, 3 p.m.

Class B

No. 5 Blind Brook at No. 1 Rye Neck, 3 p.m.

No. 3 Bronxville at No. 2 Hastings, 3 p.m.

Class C

No. 4 Hamilton at No. 1 North Salem, 3 p.m.

No. 5 Tuckahoe at No. 4 Hamilton, 3 p.m.

Field hockey

Section 1 tournament

Class B

Quarterfinals

No. 8 Pearl River at No. 1 Lakeland, 4 p.m.

No. 5 Nyack at No. 4 Panas, 4:30 p.m.

No. 6 John Jay at No. 3 Somers, 4:30 p.m.

No. 7 Pelham at No. 2 Rye, 6 p.m.

The lohud sports podcast.

I sat down this afternoon with sports editor Leif Skodnick to reflect on last week’s Section 1 football quarterfinals and preview the upcoming semifinals. I also give my predictions for all of this week’s semifinals and discuss the future of the championship games at Mahopac High School.

Please listen to our chat on SoundCloud or subscribe to download the Lohud Sports podcast on iTunes. We’ll have more on high school football as sectionals wind down and states heat up in the coming weeks, so make sure to stay tuned.

Twitter:@lohudinsider

New Rochelle defeats Mahopac 2-0 in the first round of Class AA boys soccer playoffs at New Rochelle High School in New Rochelle on Thursday, October 20, 2016.

Class AA 

No. 5 Scarsdale (9-4-2) vs. No. 8 New Rochelle (9-4-3) 

When: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Where: Scarsdale HS

Key players: Sc — Luca Novaes, Jr., F; Fayez Merchant, Jr., D; Michael Spiro, Sr., MF. NR — Harwan Alzuabidi, Sr., F; Omar Tejada, Sr., MF; Felipe Tobon, Jr., D.

Previous meeting(s): Scarsdale won 1-0 on Sept. 28 and they tied 1-1 on Oct. 17

Outlook: There will be three semifinals on Wednesday which pit league opponents against each other, with this being one of them. Scarsdale got the better of the rivalry during the regular season, so based on those results and the fact that they’ll be playing on their home turf, the Raiders should enter this one as a slight favorite. The recent emergence of Novaes, who has now scored in five consecutive games, is another good indication for Scarsdale. He’s given coach Paul Brooks a dynamic presence up top, which was something that may have been lacking earlier in the season. Overall, the Raiders are a tactically-sound team which rarely makes strategic mistakes. There are two areas where the Huguenots may have an advantage, though: Athleticism and depth. Coach Jarohan Garcia is not shy about going to his bench frequently, which helps keep his players fresh. And when he does, there isn’t a noticeable drop-off. Garcia also employs an unconventional goalie rotation, with seniors Danny Ayala and Ryan Goldstein alternating starts. (Ayala is in line to start on Wednesday.) It’s worked so far, with the Huguenots allowing more than one goal just once all season. Both teams are strong defensively, so I’m expecting a fairly low-scoring affair. One goal will likely be the difference, and after pulling off the biggest upset of the playoffs thus far against top-seeded Mamaroneck, I’m beginning to believe in the Huguenots.

Prediction: New Rochelle 1, Scarsdale 0

—

No. 3 Arlington (12-5-1) vs. No. 10 Ossining (10-6-1)

When: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Where: Arlington HS

Key players: Arl — Tristan Battistoni, Jr., MF; Will Kautsky, Sr., D; Peter Petrillo, Sr., F. Oss — Nolan Lenaghan, Fr., MF; Mateo Marra, So., MF; Miguel Marra, Sr., F.

Previous meeting(s): Ossining won 2-1 on Sept. 12

Outlook: Anyone who doubted the defending champs has to be having second thoughts by now. There has been a lot of craziness in the AA field so far in these playoffs, with three of the four home teams losing in the quarterfinals. Which was the only one to slip through to the semis? That’s right, none other than the most consistent program in Section 1 for the last five years. If there’s one thing that we can count on, year in and year out, it’s that Arlington will compete for a title. The names in the starting lineup may change, but the level of play rarely does. It took the Admirals some time to break in several new starters this year, but they’ve now won 11 of their last 12, including eight straight. (Well, technically they tied Horace Greeley in their last game, but they advanced on penalty kicks.) Ossining, on the other hand, hasn’t gone this far in the playoffs in quite some time. The Pride started off strong this season at 5-0-1, but faltered towards the end of the season and didn’t enter sectionals with much buzz. They’ve gone on the road and knocked off higher seeds in No. 7 Ketcham and No. 2 Yorktown, thanks in large part to the emergence of Lenaghan. He’s scored four of Ossining’s five postseason goals, which has taken some of the heat off of leading-scorer Miguel Marra (16 goals). Those two will be a handful for Arlington to deal with, and they have the Pride playing with newfound confidence. It’s also important to remember that Ossining came out on top when they met in the regular season. That tells me there will be no intimidation factor when the Pride take the field, which is why I think they can keep this run going.

Prediction: Ossining 2, Arlington 1

Pearl River beat Nanuet 2-1 in overtime of a Class A boys soccer quarterfinal at Pear River Oct. 24, 2016.

Class A

No. 1 Pearl River (14-2-2) vs. No. 4 Lakeland (13-3-2)

When: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Where: Pearl River HS

Key players: PR — Kevin Doorley, Sr., MF; Craig MacDonald, Sr., F; Christian Madigan, Sr., D. Lk — Nick Estrella, Sr., GK; Nick Foci, Sr., F; Matias Prando, Sr., MF.

Previous meeting(s): PR won 3-0 on Sept. 5

Outlook: These teams don’t play in the same league, but they have a rivalry that is as intense as any that you’ll find. They’ve made a habit of playing every year, and after years of domination from Lakeland, Pearl River has seized control. The Pirates have won their last three meetings, most recently at the fourth annual Westchester vs. Rockland Challenge. The score may be a bit deceiving, as the Hornets won the possession battle and created more chances in the first half, but were hurt by their inability to finish. You can bet that Pearl River coach Damon O’Keefe won’t allow his team to get overconfident. Lakeland has done a better job of finding the back of the net recently, led by Foci (14 goals) and Prando (nine goals and 10 assists). The result has been 10 consecutive wins. The Pirates have been led the trio of Doorley, MacDonald and Denis Fleming, who have combined to score 40 goals this season. MacDonald had the winner against Nanuet in the quarterfinals, which prevented a major upset. Was that game a wake-up call for Pearl River? Or did it expose a weakness? I tend to think it’s the former, and given the recent history, it would be difficult to pick against the defending champs.

Prediction: Pearl River 2, Lakeland 1

—

No. 2 Byram Hills (14-2-2) vs. No. 3 Somers (15-2-1)

When: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Where: Byram Hills HS

Key players: BH — Jack Beer, Sr., MF; Matt Groll, Sr., GK; Ryan Noel, Jr., MF. Som — Luke Bugoni, Sr., D; Evan Keiltyka, Sr., MF; Jack Maher, Sr., MF.

Previous meeting(s): None

Outlook: In one corner, you have a perennial contender which will be playing in its 11th consecutive semifinal. In the other, you have an up-and-coming program that looks like it could be here to stay. I mentioned that Arlington has been the most consistent program in Section 1 for the last five years, but if you want to extend that to 10-12 years, the answer is probably Byram Hills. Coach Matty Allen has developed a program that you can pencil in for 12-plus wins and a deep playoff run every single year. And with a tremendous senior class, led by the Georgetown-bound Beer (16 goals and 10 assists), the Bobcats are right in the thick of it again. That’s what first-year coach Brian Lanzetta is hoping to establish at Somers, and he’s on the right track. The Tuskers were one of the best stories of the regular season after starting 11-0, and they appear to have some staying power. The defense has been outstanding with 12 shutouts on the year, but the offense has lacked some consistency in recent weeks. Maher (12 goals) stepped up in the quarters against Keio, and there is some young talent which Lanzetta feels can ease the burden. I expect Somers to remain a contender for years to come, but at this point, it would be difficult to bet against a team with the pedigree that Byram has.

Prediction: Byram Hills 1, Somers 0

Hastings tops Blind Brook 3-0 in boys soccer action at Blind Brook High School in Rye Brook on Tuesday, October 11, 2016.

Class B

No. 1 Rye Neck (15-2) vs. No. 4 Blind Brook (11-6-1)

When: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Where: Rye Neck HS

Key players: RN — Luis Galeano, Sr., F; Pierre Klur, Sr., MF; Reed Peterson, Sr., MF. BB — Oliver Kleban, Sr., MF; Joao Souza, Sr., F; Paul Trokie, Sr., MF.

Previous meeting(s): Rye Neck won 1-0 on Sept. 22 and Blind Brook won 2-1 on Oct. 6

Outlook: Before Rye Neck won a section championship in 2014, it was Blind Brook which ruled Class B. The Trojans won three straight titles from 2011-13 and feel that they have the goods to get back on top. They went through a rough patch towards the end of the regular season with four straight losses, but they’ve now won four straight and seem to have straightened out their issues. A big reason for the improved play has been the return of Souza, who announced his presence by scoring the lone goal in Monday’s quarterfinal win over Valhalla. He represents Blind Brook’s most dangerous offensive weapon, though Kleban and Trokie have also had their moments. And with goalkeeper Jordan Schoen anchoring things in the back, the Trojans have been solid all around. They split in two games this season, which represented Rye Neck’s lone league loss. That familiarity should benefit Blind Brook, but there’s a lot to like about this Panthers’ roster. That team that won it all in ’14 was loaded with sophomores, which is now a deep and talented senior class. Galeano is the big name and leading scorer with 10 goals, but there are a lot of other weapons for co-coaches Bryan Iacovelli and Frank Gizzo. They’ve been to two straight section finals, and I think this group of seniors can make it three in a row.

Prediction: Rye Neck 1, Blind Brook 0

—

No. 2 Hastings (15-1-1) vs. No. 3 Bronxville (12-6)

When: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Where: Reynolds Field in Hastings-on-Hudson

Key players: Hs — Alex Bourgeois, Jr., D; Oscar Pereira, Sr., D; Jackson Silverstein, Sr., F. Bx — Jeb Burnell, Jr., F; Mac Crawford, Jr., D; Will Vranka, Sr., MF.

Previous meeting(s): Hastings won 3-0 on Oct. 15

Outlook: When these two met a couple weeks ago, it wasn’t particularly close. That means that anything other than a Yellow Jackets win would be a big surprise, but there are reasons to believe this game will be closer than the previous one. Bronxville sat a key player or two in that game to protect them from injury and cards in its final regular season game, but the Broncos will be at full strength on Wednesday. Burnell has emerged with 14 goals and six assists to give coach Donny Lucas another option besides Vranka, who was an All-Section pick last year. They’ll need to do a good job of possessing the ball and keeping it away from Hastings, which has the most explosive attack in Class B. The Jackets have added five former U.S. Academy system players to a team which won the title last year, and the additional talent has had a positive impact all over the field. The West Point-bound Pereira is the biggest standout, leading the team with 15 goals and 10 assists while often dropping back to center back and working as a shutdown defender. Look for him to move around, depending on the situation. Hastings survived an overtime scare against Edgemont in the quarters and will need to play better to get by a team of Bronxville’s caliber, but I’m not jumping off the bandwagon now. When the Jackets are clicking, they’ll be very difficult to beat.

Prediction: Hastings 3, Bronxville 1

Class C

No. 1 North Salem (11-5) vs. No. 4 Hamilton (9-8)

When: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Where: North Salem HS

Key players: NS — Michael Bossi, So., MF; Jake Leicht, Sr., D; Mike Selzer, Sr., F. Ham — Julian Espinosa, Sr., MF; Luis Rodriguez, Sr., F; Danny Valle-Ortiz, Sr., D.

Previous meeting(s): North Salem won 3-0 on Sept. 16

Outlook: The improved depth in Class C has been obvious this year, with all of the teams in the class playing each other more competitively than we’ve seen in recent seasons. North Salem’s addition is a big reason why, and the Tigers have emerged as the No. 1 seed thanks to a strong regular season. They’ve been getting contributions from all over, with five players who have scored at least three goals. Selzer is their top finisher, but the depth makes it difficult to focus on one player. North Salem has benefitted from returning most of its starters from 2015, and it’s held up well against larger schools. Hamilton played in the section championship game last season and still has some capable scorers, led by Rodriguez and his 14 goals. The Red Raiders tend to perform well in the playoffs, but their most recent meeting with the Tigers wasn’t particularly encouraging. For that reason, North Salem has to be the pick.

Prediction: North Salem 3, Hamilton 1

—

No. 2 Solomon Schechter (9-4) vs. No. 3 Haldane (7-6-2)

When: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Where: Solomon Schechter HS

Key players: SS — Noah Dunn, Sr., GK; Miles Ogihara, Jr., F; Jonathan Rand, Sr., MF. Hal — Blaine Fitzgerald, Sr., GK; Andre van Dommele, Jr., MF; Seth Warren, Sr., F.

Previous meeting(s): Schechter won 5-0 on Sept. 7

Outlook: It’s been a nice bounce back season for Haldane after a down year in 2015, but this will be a difficult matchup. The Blue Devils played Schechter earlier season and got routed, so it would take quite the turnaround to pull off the upset. They have played much better since, led by a defense which has only allowed more than one goal twice all season. Fitzgerald stands at 6-foot-7 in goal and is very difficult to beat. Schechter has an excellent goalie, as well, in Dunn, who was an All-State selection last year due to his stellar play on the Lions’ run to the state final. In the last few years, Schechter has earned the reputation as the annual favorite in Class C because of the strides it has taken in the state tournament. The Lions have many of their key players back from last year’s run, including Ogihara (16 goals) and Rand (nine goals and seven assists). A loss at this early juncture would be a shocker for a team which believes it can compete for more than just a Section 1 championship.

Prediction: Schechter 2, Haldane 0

Twitter: @vzmercogliano