Sports
Brick Girls Soccer Season Comes To End In State Group 3 Semis
The Dragons' dream of a Group 3 title to cap a terrific season comes to an end on a blustery evening.
TOMS RIVER, NJ — The Brick Township girls soccer team wanted more. It was visible in a hard-charging effort that didn't stop until the final seconds ticked off the clock at Toms River High School North on Tuesday night.
A superb season that culminated in the team's first Central Jersey Group 3 title since 1996 came to an end as the Dragons fell, 2-0, to Moorestown, the South Jersey Group 3 champions, in the NJSIAA Group 3 semifinal.
The Quakers (20-4) had a helping hand from a stiff wind that blew in Brick's faces in the first half and added loft to both goals scored.
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Ciara Imhotep put Moorestown on the board in the 13th minute, drilling a shot into the upper-left corner of the net from just outside the 18, out of reach of Dragons' keeper Molly Tully.
Moorestown kept the pressure up, challenging every touch on the ball, and in the 28th minute it looked like the Quakers were going to add another until Tully stopped a shot point blank near the top of the box as a Moorestown forward tried to blast a loose ball past her.
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Just a minute later, however, Julia Dalmass added an insurance goal off a direct kick from just beyond midfield. The wind carried the ball over the line of Brick and Moorestown players hoping to pounce on it and it took a huge bounce inside the 18 and just under the crossbar into the net to give the Quakers' a 2-0 lead with 11:32 remaining in the first half.
Brick's Tierney Garkowski put a direct kick on net late in the first half but Moorestown goalkeeper Nicole Quintero made the stop, one of three saves on the night for the junior.
In the second half, with the wind at their backs, the Dragons (17-5-2) pressed and looked for a crack in the Moorestown defense, which now has allowed just one goal in five state playoff games and has 13 shutouts on the season. But Moorestown marked forwards Reese Beggs and Danielle Crist tightly all night and neither could break free from the blanketing coverage to get off a quality shot.
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Photo by Karen Wall, Patch staff
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