Promising Players Pace Finley Girls’ Soccer “White”
The J. Taylor Finley Middle School “white” girls’ soccer team needed time to mature with 18 seventh graders on its 26 player roster this fall. While the Falcons compiled a 3-5-1 mark, the squad was promising on many fronts.
Coached by Courtney Weber, Finley was led by seventh graders Julia Steinberg (3 goals, 2 assists), Charlotte Maggio (3g, 1a), Johanna Campos-Moreira (1g, 2a) and goalie Ainsley Lumpe and eighth graders Marissa Stafford (2g, 5a), Abby Maichin (2g, 2a) and Christiana Maceluch (3g). Seventh graders Jordan Forte, Kemberlin Hernandez-Veliz, Grace Kata and Lumpe also scored for the Falcons.
Finley benefitted from Lumpe’s superb play in the net. “Ainsley was great on the field, but her main position was in the net, where she made many big saves that kept us in the game,” Weber said.
A 4-1 victory over Babylon was the highlight of the season. “This was a great win because Babylon was the closest team to our skill level,” Weber said. “We scored the first goal in the first and second periods and I knew we would eventually win the game.”
Weber said Finley’s victories over Amityville (6-0) and Copiague (5-1) saw many different players score goals. “By our last game, we improved so much compared to our first game,” she added.
All 26 players saw action for the Falcons. “Every team member was a contributor,” Weber said. “Aside from goal scoring, we had great defensive players that gave it their all every game. For many players, it was their first year and by our last game you could not tell it was their first season.”
With so many players eligible to return next fall, Weber sees a strong team in Finley’s future.