Fitch falters, season ends in 4-0 defeat against Green | News, sports, jobs

Staff Photo / Dan Hiner Fitch’s Tayrismer Mendez Tirado, 19, tries to arrange a jumping ball while holding off a pair of Green defenders during Monday’s Division II district semifinal at Green Memorial Stadium.

GREEN – It was just over a month ago that the Austintown Fitch and Green girls soccer teams faced off at Falcon Stadium.

The Bulldogs won that night in September and it was a similar story Monday when the two faced off again in a Division II district semifinal. This time the Bulldogs advanced after a 4-0 win at Green Memorial Stadium.

“We knew going into this game that we were going to see an opponent that was very technical and very good,” Fitch coach Kara Garland said.

The Falcons (3-12-2) fell behind early and had to play catch-up all night. The Bulldogs struck just under eight minutes into the game and controlled the first twenty minutes of the game.

Green (10-5-3) increased the lead to 2-0 with 3:12 to play before halftime. Madysen Kerley fired a free-kick into the bottom right corner and past the outstretched arms of Fitch keeper Jordan Corll.

“I feel like we got a little bit of momentum in the second part of the first half, and then we had another setback from a free kick,” Garland said.

Then things went from bad to worse after Corll had to leave the match five minutes into the second half. She came to the edge of the penalty area to try to stop a shot, but the ball hit her in the head. Melina Carrabbia grabbed a pinafore and a pair of gloves to end the match in net.

Green took advantage of the change of goalkeeper when Leilani McMichael fired a shot over Carrabbia’s head less than a minute into her stint at the back.

Despite the quick score allowed, Carrabbia helped keep the Falcons in the game. She registered 10 saves and her final goal came in the closing minutes, when the match had already been decided.

“(Carrabbia) is very willing to go anywhere,” Garland said. “When Jordan went down, it was as if she already knew it and was ordering the people on the sidelines to grab her gloves, as if she was about to score a goal. She did a fantastic job.”

The Falcons had a few chances to put pressure on the Bulldogs, but they were unable to break through.

In the first half, Serena Robinson followed up a shot and found an open net on a rebound attempt, but the ball stuck in her feet along the left side of the frame. In the second half, Tayrismer Mendez Tirado blew through the Green defense. She had some space, but couldn’t get enough shots to get past the goalkeeper.

“We had scary moments for them,” Garland said. “I feel like this is something we’ve struggled with all season, just having someone who can consistently put the ball in the back of the net. I feel like we had moments in the game where we were a threat to them.”

Garland completed her first season as the Falcons’ head coach. She also had to say goodbye to her seven-girl senior class. That group consisted of Sophia Hunter, Alex Willis, Addison Williams, Gianna Franklin, Chloe Smith, Corll and Robinson.

“The progress they made, they never gave up, they believed in what we were trying to accomplish and they didn’t settle,” Garland said. “There were maybe three or four that started at the beginning of the season, but by the end of it everyone had an opportunity to start.

‘We’re going to miss the senior class. Jordan in goal, Chloe (and the other) players on the pitch… they are irreplaceable. We are grateful for their efforts and what they have brought to the program.”