Falcons Federal champs

By Jon Moffett

Fitch girls defeated Boardman 1-0 to sweep the title.

AUSTINTOWN — Three yellow cards, two tough rivals and one goal decided the Federal League championship Wednesday.

The Boardman girls soccer team traveled to Austintown to take on Fitch in a game with tons of implications on the line. If Fitch won or tied, the Falcons would have sole possession of the league title. But if Boardman won, Fitch would split the title with Massillon Jackson, which had won the title for the past 15 years.

Fitch erased any doubts with a 1-0 victory, improving their record to a perfect 7-0 in the Federal League.

“I’m very proud of our girls,” Fitch coach Carlo Trafficante said. “I’m happy for them because I don’t think anybody really gave us a chance.”

Fitch looked to put the Spartans away early. Less than three minutes into the first half, Boardman goalkeeper Cheyenne Khatib bobbled the ball, and Fitch attacked the goal. But the Boardman defense was able to clear the ball away.

Fitch took advantage of another opportunity when sophomore midfielder Jen Shiley received a pass, split two defenders and beat Khatib to put the Falcons up for good.

Despite the early goal, Boardman played tough and had chances to score. With just under a minute left, senior Jaime Avona had a shot on an open net, but the ball hit the crossbar and sailed out of bounds.

Boardman coach Fawzi Mujahed said his team played hard, but the final score tells the story.

“It doesn’t go by how many shots or who controlled who, it goes by goals,” Mujahed said. “We made a mistake in the beginning of the game, and that’s what the score says.”

“It’s unbelievable ,” Shiley said of the win. “I’m so proud of our team.”

Shiley’s goal was the lone mistake for Khatib and the Spartans. Avona and sophomore Heather Hughes did their best to keep the game physical and close.

Emotions were running high and spilled over with less than 10 minutes left in the game. Fitch’s Emily Durina, and Boardman’s Kristy Lake and Avona all received yellow cards.

Fitch senior defender Aylssa Yacovone said composure was the key to keeping the lead.

“We try to keep ourselves composed, and the physicalness just makes us try to play harder and it pushes us to win more,” Yacovone said.

jmoffett@vindy.com