Paupack and Honesdale battled to a scoreless tie through one cold, rain-soaked half of soccer Monday afternoon.

Both teams settled into a tentative pattern of play, relying heavily on solid goalkeeping and airtight defense. This pattern continued into the second half, but was finally broken by an unlikely duo: Jillian Alderfer & Brittany Davis.

Alderfer is one of Paupack’s best players and the team’s reigning MVP. An attacking mid, Jillian worked her way free in front of the Hornet net early in the second half. She snagged a perfect pass from Davis and hammered the ball home.

“I’m really happy that I scored tonight,” Alderfer told TWI Sports with a big smile. “Honesdale is one of our biggest rivals, so it means alot to put the ball in the back of the net and help us win.”

Alderfer’s tally was all the home team would need on this particular evening. The Lady Bucks did add an insurance goal later in the half, but it was more than Heather Michael would need. Paupack’s veteran keeper stopped everything the Lady Hornets fired at her en route to the 2-0 Wyoming Valley Conference victory.

With the win, Coach Mike Soskil’s girls improved to 4-2-1 overall. The Lady Bucks are now 3-1-1, tied for second place with Delaware Valley in the WVC’s Division ‘B’. Both teams are still chasing Valley West, which is undefeated at 5-0-0.

“It’s a very tough league this year,” said Coach Soskil. “We tied DV and lost to Valley West 2-0. I think both of those matches are going to be very interesting the second time around. Our girls are really starting to come together.”

Alderfer agrees wholeheartedly with her coach’s assessment.

“We’re very tight...really close-knit,” Jillian said. “We don’t just play soccer, we hang out together, too. We’re all pretty good friends. I think we have great chemistry.”

Next up for Paupack is a road trip this afternoon to Pitt-ston Area. The Patriots are still in search of their first win of the year (0-5-0).

Back on Track
Paupack lost several key players from last year’s squad that advanced to the District Two tournament before losing to Valley West.

However, with holdovers like Alderfer and Michael in leadership roles, a younger soccer squad is poised for a return to the post season.

On Monday afternoon, Coach Soskil’s squad went toe-to-toe with archrival Honesdale. The Hornets held Paupack in check throughout the first half, but then the Lady Bucks took over after intermission.

“Paupack is a very good team and I knew we’d be lucky to come out of here with a win,” Coach Eric Eisele said. “We’re  getting better. The girls played with a little bit more passion than they did this weekend, so that’s an encouraging sign.”

Honesdale took on Lake Lehman Saturday and suffered a heartbreaking 1-0 loss. The Red & Black surrendered just one second half goal, but simply couldn’t muster any con-sistent offensive pressure.

The story was similar on Monday as Paupack outshot the Maple City girls by a staggering 14-2 margin. The Lady Bucks also held a 7-2 edge in corners.

On the Attack
Paupack seized momentum early in the second half. The Lady Bucks ignored nasty weather conditions and a slick field, bringing ever-increasing pressure to bear on the Honesdale net.

Alderfer finally broke through in the 59th minute. She took a pass from freshman Brittany Davis and blasted the ball past Leanna Bennett. Jillian is a versatile, multi-sport athlete who also excels in basketball and field hockey. However, she doesn’t hesitate for even a moment when asked where her allegiance lies.

“Soccer is my all-time favorite sport, no doubt about it,” Jillian said. “I’ve been playing since I was maybe 5-years-old, so it’s a really big part of my life.”

Alderfer is once again among the team leaders in most major statistical categories. In addition, Jillian has already earned three Player of the Game awards this spring.

“We expect alot from Jillian and she’s definitely delivering,” said Coach Soskil. “I really believe in the 10 years that I’ve been coaching, Jill is the most well-rounded player we’ve had.”

Paupack increased its lead to 2-0 just six minutes after Alderfer’s goal. This time, it was Carli Moritz who did the honors.

Honesdale was called for a handball right in front of the net at the 65:53 mark. Coach Soskil called upon Carli to take the penalty kick.

A senior defender, Moritz positioned the ball, took a deep breath and blasted it past a sprawling Bennett. The goal was the first of Moritz’s varsity career.

These two tallies were plenty of offensive support for Michael. A junior keeper who stepped into the starter’s role late last spring, Heather recorded her fifth shutout of the season. She made a pair of solid saves versus Honesdale and now boasts a miserly 1.24 goals-against average.

“Heather has been training to be a keeper since back in junior high and she’s really come a long way,” said Coach Soskil. “Heather is much more confident than she used to be and I think she’s the best keeper in the league.”

Score by Periods...
HON (2-3-0)  0  0 - 0
WAL (3-1-1)  0  2 - 2