WESTLAKE, Ohio (Oct. 5, 2022) -- Rocky River grabbed a 3-0 lead over the first 20 minutes of play and held on for a 4-3 victory, as the Pirates defeated the Westlake Demons in a Wednesday night Great Lakes Conference West Division match at Read Stadium.
The River Raiders got two goals each from Ava Patti and Sophia Sindelar as they won their eighth consecutive game this season and their second in as many years against a Westlake program that has dominated the all-time series between the west-side suburban neighbors.
Some Pirate pinball helped the visitors net the first goal of the contest two minutes-and-19 seconds in when a Patti shot banged off the crossbar and found Annika Mocho who deftly passed back to Sindelar who found twine. A Patti goal -- assisted by Cara McKenna -- in the 13th minute lifted No. 12 (Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association, DI) Rocky River to an early 2-0 lead.
The Maroon & White made it 3-0 in the 20th minute when a Mackenzie Russell attempt was deflected to Patti, who tidied up with her second of the match. The Demons (9-4, 3-1 GLC West) was able to get some deep pressure on River late in the opening half. That pressure yielded two scores, one by Jessie Meno in the 31st minute and one by Ella Henton in the 38th, and the Pirates (12-1-1, 4-0) went into halftime leading 3-2.
Sindelar's second of the night -- a goal set up by a long Olivia Byall pass and a nifty middle play by Maeve Kelly -- vaulted the Rocky River lead back to two (4-2) in the 65th minute. Time to enjoy that cushion was short: Westlake filed a third goal in the 67th minute when Avery Shreffler scored on a penalty kick after a foul in the box.
The Shreffler goal marked the most River had yielded in a match this season, but the Pirates would yield no more in a pressure-packed final 13 minutes of action.
For the match, Rocky River had 10 corner kicks to Westlake's one.
Caitlin Rose made three saves for the Pirates, who won for just the fourth time in 32 all-time matches against the Demons (Westlake is now 25-4-3 in the series).
With her twin twine-finders Sindelar has now scored a goal in five straight games. Her 24 goals on the season are tops on the team.
CANNON FIRE ...
SOPHIA SO GOOD: Sophomore Sophia Sindelar's second goal Wednesday marked the 38th of her career. That ties her with Sophia Murray (2018-21) for 10th place on Rocky River's all-time scorer's list. Sindelar's 24 goals this season mark the second-most (Patti: 28 in 2020) by a River player in the last decade. The sophomore standout now has 53 points on the season; she is the 14th player in Pirate history to log 50-or-more in a single season.
MISS ASSIST: With her 13th assist on the season, Ava Patti now has 26 in her career. That ties her with Addie Harris (2018-21) for 11th place in program history. ... Rocky River has been credited with 55 assists on 57 goals this season.
ON DECK: Rocky River's next match will be a home-field affair against Fairview on Oct. 12 (7 p.m.).
by Skip Snow
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