Ashley Bell leads Babylon to Suffolk Class B girls soccer title
Babylon celebrates its 2-1 victory over Center Moriches in the Suffolk Class B girls soccer championship on Saturday. Credit: Tom Lambui
After scoring 19 goals in the regular season, Babylon senior Ashley Bell didn’t think it could get much better .
But it did. Bell helped lead No. 2 Babylon to a 2-1 victory over top-seeded Center Moriches in the Suffolk Class B girls soccer championship at Diamond in the Pines on Saturday.
“This is the best day of my life,” Bell said. “I can’t believe after last year when we lost, we’d finally get revenge for the seniors this year. I’m just so happy.”
Babylon avenged last season's 2-1 overtime loss to Center Moriches in the Suffolk final.
Bell got the Babylon offense going with the first goal off an assist from Brooke Gengler less than four minutes into the game.
“I saw the right-hand corner open," Bell said, "and I knew we had to score because once we scored the first goal I knew the game would be ours."
Coach Olivia Stenger said the team talked before the game about the importance of getting that first goal and controlling the game.
“She took it upon herself ... and got the ball at the back of the net, which is awesome because it definitely set the tone for the rest of the game.”
Grace Varley added the next goal off an assist from Katherine Taylor to give Babylon a 2-0 lead with 19:18 remaining in the first half.
Stegner said they knew the first 10 minutes of the second half were going to be crucial in not letting them score.
That’s when the Babylon (9-8) defense, led by goalie Ava Hanson, stepped up its play.
“I knew my team was always there for me if I messed up and when I see that ball I just charged right at it,” said Hanson, who ended the game with 11 saves.
Center Moriches (8-4-3) finally found the back of the net when junior captain Delaney Kleinman scored with 24:26 remaining in the game.
The Panthers defense held on the rest of the way. Babylon will face Nassau champion and No. 1 seed Seaford (13-1) next Saturday in the Long Island Championship with the winner advancing to the state championship.
"We're going to LIC and then states," Varley said.
