Portledge girls soccer falls to Poly Prep in NYSAIS semifinals
Portlege head coach Phil Hills talks with his assistants on the sidelines during the PSAA girls soccer final against Waldorf on Oct. 25, 2023, at Cantiague Park. Credit: Dawn McCormick
When the postseason started, the Portledge girls soccer team was not satisfied with simply making the state tournament. The Panthers believed they had the talent to go on a run no other team in the program ever had.
Portledge accomplished that, reaching the semifinal round of the NYSAIS tournament for the first time in program history. But on Monday, the Panthers’ season ended there with a 1-0 loss to host Poly Prep, the second seed.
Portledge, which won its fifth straight PSAA championship this season to qualify for the NYSAIS tournament, was the No. 6 seed in the state tournament and finished with an 18-2-1 record.
“I’m incredibly proud,” senior midfielder Kaz Vezzuto said. “Last year we just wanted to make it to states and we did and we kind of sat there satisfied. But this year we wanted to push a little more. We thought that we could win.”
“My girls fought right to the end,” said coach Phil Hills, whose team won two games in the NYSAIS tournament. “We were pressing them in the last minutes to get goals and I couldn’t be happier. I told the girls at the end that it stings to lose a big game, but to go 18-2-1, you guys are winners by the way you came together as a team.”
Poly Prep (9-1-5) scored with 12:19 left in the first half. When a failed clear attempt hit off a Poly Prep attacker to stay in the offensive zone, Lila Suter-Chung corralled the loose ball and scored the winning goal.
“I think the teams were evenly matched and it was just one little mistake on our part and that was it,” Hills said. “That’s what happens in big matches.”
But that doesn’t take away from what Portledge accomplished throughout its season.
Vezzuto remembers joining a talented Portledge team as a sophomore and feeling as if she and her classmates could make it even better. The seniors are proud of what they’ve accomplished over the last few years.
“This means a lot to me,” Vezzuto said. “I came here my sophomore year and the team was already pretty good and it was a lot to live up to, but to be able to take this team even further, I’m so grateful for this.”