WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield High girls’ soccer team strung together two wins in a row last week. They defeated Stoneham on the road, 4-2 to win the second annual Inspire Cup on Oct. 20 and followed that up with a 5-0 win over Watertown on Senior Night Oct. 22 at Landrigan Field.
The Warriors honored captains Molly Anderson and Stella Carlino on Senior Night. The two seniors led the way in Wakefield’s most impressive victory of the season as Carlino scored 2 goals while Anderson and the defense shut out the Raiders.
“Stella and Molly are two talented players, who have dedicated a great amount of time and effort into our program over their four years,” said head coach Nico Manganiello. “As coaches, we have a tremendous amount of respect for the effort they put in on a daily basis. They are certainly well-respected and loved by their teammates and it showed on the field in our performance.”
Wakefield wasted no time in creating a lasting memory on Senior Night, jumping out to a 1-0 lead early and putting away three more goals for a 4-0 lead at halftime.
Sophomore Ella Ferrell scored Wakefield first two goals of the night. She opened the scoring after sophomore Teaghan Johnson dribbled into some traffic at the top of the box and the ball deflected back towards Ferrell who put it into the top left corner from about 25 yards out.
Ferrell’s second goal also came from distance on a strong individual effort. She won possession in midfield, took the space with a few strong dribbles and fired a cannon from nearly 30 yards top shelf again for the 2-0 advantage.
Anderson set the tone defensively from her center back spot, a trend that continued all night along with help from multiple players including junior Ella Medeiros, sophomore Hannah Caplin, junior Caroline Burns and junior Jill Arcari.
Freshman goalkeeper Catie Goodwin was also locked in for all 80 minutes. She made a nice stop from point blank range just after Ferrell’s second tally, helping build momentum for Carlino’s first of the night. The play started on a throw in by Caplin to junior Keira O’Brien who fed Ferrell. A switch up to Johnson and then junior Nora Fitzgerald got the play moving before Carlino received it in the midfield, made a move to shed a defender and finished on an off-angle from just inside the 18, again lofted over the goalkeeper for a 3-0 lead with 22 minutes left in the half.
With Fitzgerald, Ferrell, O’Brien and Carlino dominating the midfield, Wakefield never relented and Anderson and Co. were there to clear anytime Watertown broke through the ranks.
Wakefield added to their lead on a goal from freshman Phoebe Belknap. Ferrell sent a corner kick in and Johnson earned her first of two assists on the night with a deflection before Belknap finished in front. While the night belonged to Anderson and Carlino, that play was an exciting picture of the future for Wakefield fans who have seen multiple sophomores and freshmen gain experience and step up their games this season.
Goodwin had an impressive slide tackle outside of the box to break up a Watertown rush while Anderson and Burns stopped another late chance to keep the lead at 4-0 entering the break.
Carlino scored her second goal just two minutes into the second half. The play started when Fitzgerald controlled a throw-in and sent a cross into the box. Johnson pressured two defenders and got a piece of the ball before Carlino found it on the weak side, volleying a one-timer into the far corner for a 5-0 lead.
Watertown had plenty of opportunities on multiple corner kicks in the second half but Goodwin, substitute goalie, sophomore Adrianna Chesna and the defense stood up to each challenge as the Warriors cruised to their fourth win of the season.
“As a team, we were very happy to be able to mark the occasion with a win for Stella and Molly,” said Manganiello. “They both of course had their fingerprints all over the match with Stella making a massive contribution with her brace and Molly helping to anchor our backline to a well-earned clean sheet.”
Warriors lift Inspire Cup
The Inspire Cup, an annual game between the Stoneham and Wakefield girls’ and boys’ soccer programs which supports the Inspire Cafe in Wakefield, belonged to the Warriors this season.
While last year’s Cup ended in a 2–2 draw, this year’s matchup delivered a decisive result, with Wakefield earning a 4–2 win and bringing the trophy home for the first time.
Johnson led the way with a standout performance, recording three goals and an assist. Fitzgerald added a goal and two assists of her own and O’Brien added an assist.
Johnson wasted no time getting Wakefield on the board, scoring just three minutes into the match. Fitzgerald slipped a well-timed pass through the defense, sending Johnson in alone on the keeper, and Johnson calmly slotted the ball low to the keeper’s right to make it 1–0.
Stoneham responded quickly, capitalizing on two crosses into the box to take a 2–1 lead 15 minutes into the match. Just before halftime, Wakefield struck back. Ferrell played a ball into Fitzgerald’s feet, which Fitzgerald flicked beyond the defense to send Johnson in alone again. Johnson buried her second goal of the night, leveling the score at 2–2.
Early in the second half, O’Brien — who was active and relentless in midfield throughout the match — played a long ball through to Johnson. Using her strength to outmuscle the defender, Johnson won the ball in front of goal and finished to complete her hat trick, putting Wakefield ahead 3–2.
About 10 minutes later, Johnson turned playmaker, when she found Fitzgerald at the top of the box, where Fitzgerald beat her defender and unleashed a powerful shot off the crossbar and into the net, extending Wakefield’s lead to 4–2.
Wakefield controlled the tempo the rest of the way, with strong contributions from Carlino along the right wing, and steady defensive play from center backs Anderson and Medeiros. Thanks to confident possession and strong defensive play, Wakefield secured the victory — and the Inspire Cup.
The season finale for the Warriors will take place today at 4:15 p.m. when they welcome Dracut to Walton Field.