Suffield booters control Avon girls under the lights, 3-0

Avon’s Amanda Holtzman (22) keeps the ball away from Suffield’s Julia Picard (6) in Friday night’s game in Avon.

AVON – The Avon High girls soccer team has won the last two straight Class L championships. Coming into Friday night’s Spirit Night contest with Suffield on the high school football field, they had won 12 straight games and have given up just two goals in that span. They’re a good team.

On Friday night, Suffield High showed they are on a different level. The Wildcats clinched their fourth straight NCCC championship in the last five seasons with a solid 3-0 decision over the Falcons under the lights on the football field.

At times, the Wildcats moved through the Avon defense with ease with their one-touch passing. Their first goal was gorgeous. Suffield’s Alexa Champagne was moving down the middle of the field and kept control of the ball despite some bumps from Avon’s Michaela Marcus.

Champagne pushed the ball ahead to Reilly Williams, who never broke stride and with one touch, directed the ball into the net with 31:14 left in the first half.

“Their forwards are probably the best forwards they’ve ever had,” Avon coach Jim Murray said. “Brittany Champagne (All-New England in 2012) and Reilly Williams are outstanding.”

In the second game of the season, Suffield dominated Avon with a 5-0 decision. Losing to the defending Class M champion Wildcats that returned 10 starters wasn’t as surprising as giving up five goals. Avon has given up just 10 goals this year and eight have been to Suffield.

Avon (13-2, 13-2 NCCC) lost again last night but they played better than they did in September. They got off 10 shots and had a few good opportunities.

“We had some opportunities in the first 10 minutes. Those are opportunities we’ve been talking about all year. You have to finish those off,” Murray said.

Stephanie Saccoccio had a nice shot in front of the net that was gobbled up by Suffield goalie Meredith Ouellette (7 saves) with about 33 minutes gone in the first half. A few minutes later, the Wildcats got on the board.

“We hung with them,” Murray said. “If we get that first goal, it could have been a different game.”

Suffield coach David Sullivan said his Wildcats (15-0, 15-0 NCCC) weren’t as sharp as they have been this season.

“We knew it would be a battle,” he said. “In that first game (5-0 win), we finished our chances. In this game, it just took a little bit longer to finish.

“Our plan is to pressure the ball all over the field. But they pressure the ball too. We didn’t play our best because they took us out of some of the things we do.”

Murray credited Lauren Miller and Amanda Holtzman for helping to slow down Brittany Champagne and Williams. Marcus and YounJae Baek also played tough on defense for the Falcons.

“They force you to do things you want to do,” Sullivan said.

Suffield controlled most of the second half, limiting Avon to just four shots. Baek had a hard shot in the final 10 minutes that Ouellette made a nice diving save on. The Wildcats have given up just one goal in 15 games this year.

Suffield took a 2-0 lead with 16:39 left in the game. Brittany Champagne chipped a ball into the box that bounced off the crossbar back in front of the goal. In the scramble for the ball, Avon goalie Lydia Cuddeback slipped and a Suffield player collided with her, injuring Cuddleback’s leg.

The ball scooted in front of the goal and Suffield’s Lindsey Connelly was able to tap it in.

Two minutes later, All-New England defender Jillian Conosolini converted on a penalty kick for a 3-0 lead after Champagne was taken down in the penalty area.

Avon wore special green jerseys in memory of the late Colleen Martin, the long-time physical education teacher at Avon Middle School, who passed away at the age of 48 on October 11. Many of the girls on the team had Martin for a teacher.

“I think she would have been proud of the way they played,” Murray said. “They laid it all out on the field. To stick with it showed a lot of character.”

Avon closes out the regular season on Monday by hosting Granby at Fisher Meadow. The Falcons will play in the Class L tournament while Suffield, who is ranked No. 1 in the coaches’ Class LL/L poll, will play in Class L.

Suffield 3, Avon 0
At Avon
Suffield (15-0)           1  2 – 3
Avon (13-2)               0  0 – 0
Goal: Reilly Williams (S), Lindsey Connelly (S), Jillian Consolini (S); Assists: Alexa Champagne (S); Saves: Meredith Ouellette (S) 7, Emma Carlone (A) and Lydia Cuddeback (A) 10 combined; Shots: Suffield, 15-10; Corner kicks: 2-2