Moynihan's big save, Farrell's three assists lift Sayville girls soccer over Harborfields

Olivia Moynihan was in a position where few soccer goalkeepers feel comfortable. Staring down a striker 1-on-1 with a tie score in the second half. But the Sayville goalkeeper was oddly calm and confident in that moment. She knew it was going to be a pivotal play in the game’s outcome and she was determined to make it.

“I felt like I could save it, I didn’t have any doubts,” Moynihan said. “I feel like that helps. A big thing about being a goalkeeper is the mental [aspect], so if you think you can get it, you’ll get it. I felt like I needed to make that save. It was going to make or break it.”

Moynihan squared up and caught the shot in midair for one of her 10 saves. Ten minutes later, Sayville scored its first goal en route to a 3-0 victory over host Harborfields in Suffolk Division III girls soccer on Thursday.

“That was huge,” coach John Burke said. “I told her before this game we’re going to need her to make big saves. That was exactly what we needed.”

After nearly 60 minutes of scoreless play, Sophia Buffardi struck first after finishing a cross from Mckenna Farrell with 21:44 left in the second half. Seven minutes later, Abigail Schroeder scored following a scramble in the 18-yard box after a corner kick from Maiya Troll and scored to give Sayville a 2-0 lead with 14:47 left in the second half.

“I’m not usually a goal scorer, but I got in there,” said Schroeder, a defender. “You have to be ready for anything and when I saw the ball drop right at my feet, I just swung at it and it was lucky to go in.”

Burke complimented Schroeder’s soccer IQ to be in the right place, so maybe it was more instinct than luck. But Sayville continued its offensive onslaught when Lindsay DiMenna scored the final goal from 35 yards out for the Golden Flashes with 6:50 left in the contest. Farrell had all three assists.

“The first [few] minutes after the first goal is a huge time,” Schroeder said. “And to get that second goal really gave us the momentum to keep on going and score some more.”

Harborfields falls to 7-6. Sayville improved to 11-2 in Suffolk III with goals of winning the Suffolk Class A title this season.

“We’ve been really thinking about it, but I feel like we need to take each game and keep going with it,” Buffardi said. “We can’t worry about that yet because we still need to work to get there.”

The Sayville defense, including Lucy Livingston, Elizabeth Sheehan, Abigail Galaris, Kyla Kastner and Schroeder, had a strong game along with Moynihan to secure its fifth straight shutout. Moynihan feels this could be a special season for the Golden Flashes.

“From the start of the season, we’ve had counties in the back of our mind and I think it’s an achievable goal,” Moynihan said. “We have to take it one step at a time, get through each playoff game and hopefully make it there.”