Girl’s soccer returned to the South, Group II classification in 2015 after competing in Central, Group I in 2014, falling both years in the sectional semifinals.
The Pirates opened the season on a 5-1-1 run, which included impressive victories over Holy Cross and Rancocas Valley. The lone loss in that span came to Moorestown, 3-2 and the tie also came against Holy Cross, 0-0.
“When we played Holy Cross back-to-back in our fifth and sixth games of the season, we were able to beat them the first time and tie them the second time,” head coach Matt Digney said.
“The past two or three years, Holy Cross has had some very good teams. Up to that point, I think there was maybe a little bit of, kind of figuring out how good we were or where we were. With two good results like that, it put it into our heads that we are a good team, not the underdogs, but that we are the team that others should change their game for and not us.”
Cinnaminson enjoyed a very strong offensive season, outscoring opponents by a margin of 58-24. The defense and keeper Mariso DiLeo recorded six shutouts.
Miranda Sackner led the team with 19 goals, but the Pirates received multiple-goal games from a bevy of players this year including Alex Kane, Alex Keck, Fiona Flynn and Hailey Gutowski. Sackner recorded three hat tricks during the campaign.
“When we were playing like that, we were a tough team to beat. We were smart enough not to depend on her (Sackner) everyday,” Digney said. “We were capable of scoring goals from the outside half position or center half position or even in the back off set pieces.”
“It’s a good thing to have, because if other teams are going to try to mark one person up, I feel comfortable that someone else is going to give us an opportunity to score. It makes for good soccer and makes for a good team. We don’t wait for one single person to score or for someone to get lucky. Every person on that field is trying to help the team.”
The girl’s soccer team was playing its best soccer of the year to close out the regular season and into the state tournament, which saw the Pirates secure the three-seed in South, Group II.
“We really went in a positive direction the last few weeks of the season and the playoffs,” Digney said.
Cinnaminson opened with Pemberton, securing a 7-0 victory, their second shutout of the Hornets in 10 days. The Pirates then hosted Middle Township, dominating from end-to-end with a 3-1 victory. The lone goal for Middle Township came with less than four minutes remaining in the contest after the Pirates upped their lead to 3-0.
Girl’s soccer traveled to Point Pleasant Boro, the two-seed, in the sectional semifinals round of the South, Group II bracket. The Pirates season came to an end against the Shore Conference team by a score of 2-1. The lone goal was scored by Anna Saginario.
Heading into the sectional semifinals contest with Point Pleasant Boro, the Pirates were riding a 4-0-1 mark that saw them allow one goal or less in all five contests. That streak also included two shutouts, both over Pemberton.
Even though a host of seniors made major impacts on the 2015 team, the Pirates were laden with sophomores and juniors this year, gaining plenty of experience for the coming years.
“Overall, with having a fairly young team, a lot of what we were doing was new to them,” Digney said. “In the eight or ten weeks we played, I could see the growth as far as understanding the high school game.”
“A lot of these kids played club soccer and there is a different style of play. It can be hard for some of the younger players to adjust as quickly as they’d like to. I think we grew up a little bit. Maturity and chemistry was much better as the season went on.”
The Pirates finished the 2015 season with a 12-6-2 record and Digney was happy with how his seniors took it upon themselves to create a family atmosphere within the team.
“I was really pleased with the upperclassmen as far as being role models and leaders of the team,” Digney said. “They showed the underclassmen how to compete and play the game the right way. They also helped off the field where they could. It was very much like a family this year. I hope the younger players pay it forward to younger girls when they are juniors and seniors.”
