DePaul Advances to First Sectional Final by Greg Mattura of The Record
WAYNE — DePaul is headed to its first sectional final in girls soccer and it’s just a short drive across town.
A Spartans lineup expected to be a year away from contending is one win away from the North Non-Public A title after defeating Paramus Catholic in Tuesday’s semifinals, 2-0.
“This is a very young team,” said DePaul coach Patrick O’Connor, “which is great for us, great for the program, great for the school, so we’re looking forward to the future.”
Sisters Alyssa and Jazlyn Oviedo extended the Spartans’ immediate future by each scoring in the final 10 minutes to lift the No. 1 seed into Thursday’s 5 p.m. final at Passaic Tech against No. 2 Oak Knoll.
Alyssa Oviedo, a junior, scored in the 73rd minute on a penalty kick after being sandwiched by two Paladins and falling down near the 6-yard box.
Jazlyn Oviedo, among four freshmen to see action for the Spartans, scored in the 76th minute from about 8 yards. Like her sister, she shot it low and to her right for the score. Unlike her sister, the goalie didn’t get a left foot on it.
“I guess it’s a sister thing,” said Alyssa Oviedo, whose family hails from Clifton, “but we have a tendency to score goals the exact same way, and in the exact same location.”
DePaul (12-2-3) controlled play at the beginning and end of the game against a Big North United Division rival that it split two regular-season matches against by 1-0 scores. In between, Paramus Catholic (13-7) had several good chances on counter attacks.
“I think we played our butts off,” Paramus Catholic coach Bill McPartland said. “We played extremely hard. They’re a very good team, and they played extremely hard, too.”
McPartland labeled DePaul’s penalty kick “a questionable call.” He added, “When that happens, it changes the game. We have to adjust and bump kids forward, and when we do that, they turn around and get the second goal, too. And all credit to them for that.”
“In the last 20, 25 minutes of the game, I think we showed our quality,” said O’Connor, in his first season leading the girls program after several seasons as a Spartans’ boys assistant. “Like I’ve said before, this a young team and they’re only going to get better.”
DePaul has played better since battling Lakeland to a scoreless tie in the Passaic County semifinals and falling on penalty kicks. The Spartans earned a share of the United Division crown with IHA by topping the Blue Eagles, 1-0.
“I thought we deserved it,” O’Connor said of Tuesday. “Since the county semifinal, it seems [we’ve] bounced back and had two great results, one at IHA and one here to send us to the sectional finals.”
“Being the underdog since freshman year and never really getting anything, it means a lot to get this far,” said Alyssa Oviedo. “I really hope we end up doing well, but even if we don’t we still made history by getting this far.”
Email: mattura@northjersey.com