John Jay Moves to Semis with Win Over Pelham

On Friday May 17, third seeded John Jay began the sectionals with a quarterfinal matchup versus Pelham, and not going unnoticed, Jojo Degl returned from injury. Out four straight games, she eased into her reemergence.. “I was getting used to it,” said the middie. But Pelham taking a 4-3 at the end of the first had Degl fully acclimated.

Exuding determined resolve at the outset of the second, Degl won three straight face offs, had two goals and one assist. “I didn’t want to lose,” she assured, and her team followed her with a 14-8 victory.

Still, she didn’t miss a beat at midfield to start. Degl came down with the draw, raced downfield and dished to Nicole DiNapoli. On the left, the attacker fired overhand and scored just below the crossbar.

Eleven seconds in, Pelham took the next face and made good too. Mia Orlando on the draw, she snared the ball out of the air and went solo. On a beeline, Orlando cruised straight down field and fired past Molly Gallagher for the tie at 11:35.

Not for long, Degl had the next draw, and on the set up, Jordan Kauftheil continued her scoring onslaught. Receiving the ball on the left, the middie swung around her defender into space and bounced the ball past Scarlett Gristina with 10:30 left in the first.

A 2-1 game, the draw trajectory traveled back, and just like old times, it was Degl squared. Finja ran down her sister’s draw, passed to Kauftheil, and she found Mary Murphy on the other sideline. There, the defender was able to get the play ahead, and Jay set up.

The ball moving around, Kauftheil came into view again. Jane Brennan spotted the junior on the right and her move toward the goal drew the whistle. A shooting space penalty shot was awarded, and Kauftheil made it 3-1.

Back to the middle, Degl to Kauftheil to (Finja) Degl had the Wolves on the run and seemingly ready to score. Kauftheil lined up for the penalty shot, but Gristina was on the stick. The Pelican goalie stopped the ball on the bounce at 7:21, and the mini shift resulted in a major momentum change.

No choke needed, Taylor Green was all-terrain and four wheeled through the John Jay interior defense on subsequent possessions. Muscling and maneuvering, Green scored at 4:48 and 3:53.

Green wasn’t done either. After John Jay turned the ball over, the attacker’s pass from behind struck Arden Keough on the stick, and with a step, the middie drew the whistle at 1:22. Ten yards away, Keough made easy work of Gallagher, and the Pelicans took a 4-3 lead into the second period.

Degl’s feet officially wet, there was no getting stuck in the mud. She picked up her own draw, and without any hesitation, the middie was on a mission. The Wolf cut around one defender, and in the face of two more, Degl drew the penalty shot.

No chance for Gristina, the goalie wasn’t getting relief any time soon. Degl won another draw, and once again, Jay got two for the price of one. Jojo fed Finja on the cut, and the lead was had for good.

At 10:52, there was still a long way to go, but Degl continued to shorten the path. After winning the draw on the whistle, Degl dragged a flock of Pelicans to the right, and four was not nearly enough. She shot through the gaggle, and a 6-4 lead had the feathers flying everywhere.

Another Degl win didn’t return results, so the defense made the stand. With Orlando trying to make her own move, Jane Brennan jostled the big middie. A little stick check,, the ball came loose, and as Brennan got the scoop, the defender drew a yellow card on Orlando.

Brennan ran the length of the field, and on the set up, Amelia Inglis kept the roll going. She came off the pick, and Kauftheil hit the attacker at point blank for a 7-4 lead.

At 5:05, Degl got the drop for the fifth straight time. She took the ball out of the air and the Wolves had a four goal lead in their sights. Only they needed a little help from Brennan again.

An overthrow by DiNapoli in the end zone had Brennan get there first to save the possession and Kauftheil did the rest. Cutting, spinning and forcing her way into space meant another goal at 3:15 and piled on the justification for her move up the field, according to McDonough. “In the off season, we told her she was going to play some middie for us,” the coach revealed. “So Jordan with a high LAX IQ, she’s really stepped up and fulfilled the role.”

Six draws in a row didn’t keep the goal streak going, though. A wide shot turned the ball over, and Green made John Jay pay. On the right, the bull flashed the horns and swung side arm for an 8-5 game with 49 seconds left in the half.

Plenty of time, Kauftheil got Degl’s play on the bounce, and Finja Degl took her turn in the spin cycle. She rolled right on Ava Orlando and turned inside for a clear line of sight. No chance for Gristina, and John Jay regained a four goal lead with 18 seconds remaining in the half.

Degl’s draw streak finally ended, but she picked up where she left off after intermission. Back and to the right, Kauftheil ran underneath, and on the set up, Degl had a little too much taken off the top. Hit on the head as she tried to cut inside, the middie went low and gave her team a 10-5 lead.

But another Gristina save put Green in position again. Scoring at 7:38, Green and her girls had even more going for them when Brennan was hit with a yellow card.

The defense converged and stayed a step ahead nonetheless, and Gallagher did her part when the pivotal moment came. Keough lined up for the penalty, and the goalie’s deflection had DiNapoli closest to the ball.

From there, Degl and Kauftheil clipped the Pelicans wings for good. First Degl sliced through the defense for goal 11 at 3:46, and two and half minutes later, Kauftheil took a perfect end zone pass from Inglis for a commanding 12-6 lead.

Exchanging goals the rest off the way was good enough for victory and had Caitlin Brennan noticing the missing element. “Jojo is an instrumental part of our team,” concluded the attacker. “So having her back in the works, we had the wheels turning.”