SCN plays well in tie vs. Neuqua

This was a soccer game that you ended up wishing had three periods instead of two.

That way, you could discard the first period of play - in this case the mostly nondescript opening 40 minutes, keep the improving play of the second 40 minutes and then hope for something better in a period yet to be played.

As it was, the 80 minutes that were played saw a handful of chances for each team, but no goals in a 0-0 Upstate Eight Conference game.

"I think we played extremely well," St. Charles North coach Ruth Vostal said. "I look at the players our defenders were able to shut down. We created chances. I don't think we created as many chances as we needed, obviously."

Defenses dominated the match, especially in the opening half when neither team looked likely to score until the North Stars very nearly struck in the final minute before halftime.

The second half opened with a solid opportunity for Neuqua Valley (13-2-1, 6-0-1) when Alexa Wilde hit the post with a shot from distance. After 12 minutes, Nina Bulat had two chances after a Megan Oyster cross, but St. Charles North goalie Kristen Manski was up to the task both times.

"Especially in the second half, we kept on attacking and had a number of good chances," Neuqua Valley coach Joe Moreau said. "They're obviously a good defensive team. But we wanted to keep on attacking."

The visiting Wildcats came close to scoring with 11 minutes to play when Courtney Ksiazek hit a long-range free kick off the crossbar. Through the second half, Neuqua Valley's ability to slow play before moving toward the attack allowed it a better buildup.

"I think our midfield stepped up in the second half," Moreau said. "We started to win some balls and we looked to switch the attack. In the first half, our midfielders were on top of each other, and we had to create some space."

St. Charles North (4-0-3, 3-0-1) failed to carve many chances against Neuqua Valley's inline back four defensive line. Maggie Hamilton hit narrowly wide 6 minutes into the match. But the hosts' attack was largely blunted.

"I felt we dominated the midfield the whole match," Vostal said. "Their strongest players were straight up the middle. I felt Sam (Gage) and (Hamilton) did an excellent job dominating the air game."