It’s been a great week for the Cyclones. First and foremost the entire Cyclone family is thrilled to add Amanda and welcome Dana back home. For the 2nd season in a row the Cyclones have been blessed with the addition of talented players who want to play soccer and have fun although not always in that order.
After a great effort in a losing cause vs New Hyde Park on Saturday followed by arguably the worst practice in team history on Thursday, the coaches had no idea what to expect as the Cyclones opened the season by hosting the Syosset Infinity.
What they got was a great team effort, including a dominant second half en route to a solid 2-0 win. Aside from missing 2 key players, you couldn’t have written a better script. All 15 Cyclones competed for the entire 70 minutes. About 10 minutes into the game the 2 newest Cyclones stepped onto the pitch and it wasn’t long before they made their presence felt. At the 22 minute mark Amanda created just enough space to launch a majestic shot from about 30 yards out that snuck in under the crossbar stunning the Syosset keeper and some of her own Cyclone mates to make it a 1-0 game. Syosset fought hard the rest of the half and created several chances that were snuffed out by Deniz and her bend but not break defense.
The 2nd half saw the Cyclones shut down the Syosset offense by applying offensive pressure of their own. That offensive pressure resulted in several corner kicks. Each corner kick came closer and closer to ending up in the net. Finally, Diana looped a perfect corner over the keeper and onto Dana’s reliable left foot and the ball knew exactly where to go. All 15 Cyclones contributed to shutting down the Infinity the rest of the way.
With the win the Cyclones have reached the 50 win milestone. It is also only the 3rd time in 10 seasons that they have begun the league season with a victory.
