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Sports

The 2011 South Side Lady Cyclones: A Look Back on a State Title Season

The Lady Cyclones finish with a 15-2-4 overall record en route to their 16th NYS title during the fall season.

The South Side girls soccer regained its status as the New York State Class A champions after just a one year absence. 2011 marked the 16th season the Lady Cyclones won a state title in its school history.

South Side was only a minute away from being named co-champions after a total of 119 scoreless minutes with Somers High School on Nov. 20 in the championship game. Sophomore Katie Ford, however, headed a ball in with 1:01 remaining in the fourth overtime. The 1-0 final made the Lady Cyclones sole possessors of the Class A title under second-year head coach Shannon McEntee.

“We had a lot of new kids on the team, but also had girls that have been here for three or four years. They just really came together to produce this year,” McEntee said.

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The road to the title was by no means an easy task for South Side, as its journey began in early September with one of Nassau County’s toughest schedules awaiting them.

After playing to a draw against Sacred Heart in the season opener, South Side defeated Garden City, 2-0, sparking a four-game winning steak before the Lady Cyclones tied Massapequa followed by a 2-0 loss to Division, who remained undefeated during the regular season. The girls won the next three games, but the streak was halted in a 2-1 Garden City loss at home on Oct. 21 and two consecutive ties to Division and New Hyde Park. 

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Despite not posting a win in its final three games, South Side drew a No. 2 seed in the Class A playoffs. Christina Klaum, who led the team with 20 goals as a sophomore, scored a hat trick in a 6-0 rout of No. 15 Lynbrook in the first round of the playoffs. 

Klaum posted a second hat trick in the next round against No. 10 Wantagh in a 3-0 win. The sophomore forward scored again in a 1-0 win over No. 3 Garden City in the semifinals, where Kelsey Berki posted a courageous 12-save shutout.

A team South Side could not defeat during the regular season, No. 1 Division, served as its county finals opponent. After falling behind 1-0, Klaum tied the score at 1 with seven minutes remaining in regulation. Division went up a goal in the second overtime, but senior Julie Beyar tied the score again in the 100th minute, keeping her teams’ season alive. Junior Meghan Hines put in the game-winner 1:04 into the third overtime to claim the Nassau County championship.

Klaum came through once again against Suffolk champion Islip to score the lone goal of the Long Island title game win and punch the Lady Cyclones’ ticket to upstate New York. On Nov. 19, South Side played Williamsville South. Down 2-1 at halftime, the girls scored four times in the final half to win 5-2 behind a hat trick from Beyar and two goals from Klaum.

The following day, the girls completed their quest for a state title with the win over Somers. Ford started the Lady Cyclones season with the first goal and ended the season with the last and biggest goal of all.

“They all just wanted to be part of the experience and have that feeling of a title,” McEntree concluded.

South Side Top Five Stat Holders of 2011:

Goals: Christina Klaum- 20, Julie Beyar- 5, Katie Ford- 4, Meghan Hines- 4, Michaela Lynch- 4.

Assists: Victoria Reis- 8, Michaela Lynch- 5, Christina Klaum- 5, Keri Cavallo- 5, Alex Reis- 4.

Saves: Kelsey Berki- 118 (9 shutouts), Tessa Considine- 8, Anna LePetri- 1 (1 shutout).  

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