Friends Academy's Danielle Davis scores on opening kickoff against New Hyde Park

When Danielle Davis walked off the bus at New Hyde Park High School on Sept. 20, she knew she’d have a chance to do something rarely seen on a soccer field.

The Friends Academy senior girls soccer player noticed the grass field looked a little smaller than many of the turf fields that host varsity contests. She eyed the dimensions throughout the walk to the field and during warmups. It was then she decided she wanted to try something.

Score on the opening kick.

“I said to [forward Maya Morey] on kickoff, ‘Why not give it a shot?’ ” Davis said. “The goalie was off her line and I put it on frame. I was thinking about it and when we went for the kickoff, I said, ‘I’m going to give it a shot.” ’

Davis took the opening kick, took one dribble and sent the ball over the goalie’s head and directly into the goal seconds into the contest. 

“I didn’t even know she was going to do that,” coach Vincenza DeCrescenzo said. “I was talking to a coach next to me and I was like, ‘Wait, we’re up 1-0 right now,’ because I didn’t even know that was happening. She is so soccer smart that there are some things I don’t have to tell her, she just does it.”

“It almost felt unreal because the ref blew the whistle and I let the ball launch and the next second, we were back to the opening kickoff,” Davis said. “It was kind of like opening the game up 1-0.”

Davis, committed to play at Clemson, has nine goals and six assists in an 8-0 start for Friends Academy. Davis has some incredible goals throughout the season, including a bicycle kick from about 8 yards following a long free kick from Morey.

She said the pure joy of being on a soccer field with her teammates allows her to play free and take some chances. Even if they don’t result in goals, she wants to try to make plays that leave others in awe. 

“It’s just the mindset of it’s OK not to pull one of those plays off,” Davis said. “I’m not going to pull them off 100 percent of the time but there’s no harm in trying and when it does pull off, it’s awesome. But even if it doesn’t, I’m going to try it again no matter how many times I fail. It’s just having fun with the game. I think that’s really what it’s about.”

Massapequa suffers a rare loss

Massapequa, the defending state Class AA champions, lost its first contest since April 27, 2021 with a 4-1 loss to a strong Monroe-Woodbury team in non-league action Sept. 24. It was Massapequa’s first loss in 31 games after going 20-0-1 last season and sporting a 7-0-2 record before the loss. Massapequa is expected to be in the championship picture again this season as it had outscored opponents, 34-7, before the loss.

Strong start for Kellenberg

Kellenberg has challenged itself with one of the toughest non-league schedules on Long Island, and the Firebirds have proven the ability to play with anybody. Kellenberg is 9-0-2 with its two ties coming to Massapequa and St. Anthony’s, two teams that won state titles last fall. The Firebirds have defeated strong Nassau programs such as Oceanside, Mepham, Garden City and Manhasset. After their scoreless tie with St. Anthony’s, Kellenberg has proven to be a team in the championship mix this fall.