Bull's-eye locked on East girls soccer
Lady Flames vying for second straight Class A title
by PATRICK J. NAGY Reporter

Williamsville East's Jenny Griffin, diving, should be one of the top girls soccer players in the area. Griffin and Jessica Kowalski are the Lady Flames captains. Also pictured is Williamsville South's Alex Ciolko. File photo

Other than not competing for a New York State title last year, Williamsville East set the standard for soccer excellence in 2006.

The defending Section VI Class A champion Lady Flames finished 18-1, set a school record for most consecutive wins, and were ECIC Division II champions for the fifth straight time. They were also ranked No. 1 in Western New York and New York State Class A and at one time, ranked sixth in the country.

East coach Chris Durr knows everyone is gunning to beat his team.

"Coming off last year, expectations are high and we wouldn't want it any other way," he said. "I'm sure we're a bull's-eye for a lot of teams. I guess I would rather have it that way than not being anybody's best game."

Four out of the five East players who earned All-WNY honors last year graduated, including the team's all-time goal scorer and assist leader, forward Rachel Piemonte, and one of the best goalies in the program's history, Molly Bojanek. Piemonte and Bojanek, along with fellow All-WNY teammates, Aleks Quenneville and Christa Morgante, combined for a 67-9-8 record in their time at East.

"To lose four All-Western New York players was a hit to the program," said Durr. "Their success was really unmatched. But we have some good players coming back who put in a lot of time over the last couple of years."

Leading the returning players for the Lady Flames are senior co-captains, midfielder Jenny Griffin and forward Jessica Kowalski. Griffin led East with 21 assists and was second behind Piemonte in goals with 17. She was an All-WNY first team selection (second team as a sophomore) and became the first East player in school history to be named to the All-New York State first team. This past summer, she earned a bronze medal with the Western Region's women's scholastic team at the Empire State Games.

"Jenny has the capability to be, if not the best player in Western New York, in the top three," said Durr. "She has a great touch on the ball, good speed and is a phenomenal shooter. She does everything for us."

Kowalski, an ECIC III second team selection, scored 13 goals, third most on the team, and added eight assists, in her junior year.

"She has a great shot and is a true leader on and off the field," said Durr.

Also back is juniors Neha Bakhai (stopper, ECIC Division III second team), Kendra Durden (forward) and Tara Kiernan (forward, can also play midfield), and sophomores Morgan Begy (sweeper, can also play stopper), Katie Griffin (outside midfielder) and Jordan Kowalski (outside defensive back, sweeper). All will start this fall.

Durr said Bakhai started a couple of games early in her sophomore year at stopper and never left the position.

"She knows the game, anticipates well, has a good left and right foot and does a great job of marking the team's center forward," Durr added.

Kiernan plays a lot bigger than her 5-foot-3 size, Durr said.

"She doesn't get pushed off the ball," he said. "She is fast and aggressive."

Other starters are sophomore midfielder Kayla Acklin and senior outside defensive back Kristen Saviola, who hasn't played soccer at East since eighth grade.

The biggest question mark heading into the season is how junior goalie Josephine Bochiechio can adjust to the varsity level. Bochiechio played JV from seventh to tenth grade. Bochiechio is only the third varsity goalie playing for East in the past ten years (Jenna Gage, five; Bojanek, four).

"She's spent a lot of time learning the position," said Durr. "She's aggressive, quick, and has a strong work ethic. She's got high expectations of herself and we have high expectations for her."

The rest of the team is made of many sophomores who went 13-1 on JV.

East is not ducking any tough competition. The Lady Flames opened this past weekend playing in the Cohocton Soccer Showcase (see second East story) against Section V's Wayne and Livonia (Class B state champs). They will host Section V's Pittsford Mendon at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 8. Last year, Pittsford Mendon lost to Victor in the section final, which ended East's season in regionals. The Lady Flames also host Clarence in a non-league game at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 15. They close out the regular season at Amherst and Williamsville North on Oct. 12 and Oct. 19. Sandwiched between Amherst and North is Iroquois on Oct. 15.

"I've always tried to play the most difficult schedule," said Durr. "One of the things that benefited us last year was that we played tough non-league games."

Durr sees East, Iroquois and Williamsville South, not necessarily in that order, battling for the top spot in ECIC III.

East will also debut a new scoreboard this season. It was donated by fundraising efforts by current and former players and parents from the East soccer booster club.
East 2007 Schedule
9-8 Pittsford Mendon (Section V)
(North French Soccer Complex)
1 p.m.
9-11 at W.S. East.......... 4:45 p.m.
9-15 Clarence .................. 11 a.m.
9-17 Sweet Home ........ 4:30 p.m.

9-19 at Lake Shore ...... 4:45 p.m.
9-21 at Hamburg .......... 4:45 p.m.
9-25 South..................... 4:30 p.m.
9-27 at Iroquois............ 4:45 p.m.
9-28 W.S. East .............. 4:45 p.m.
10-3 at Sweet Home.... 4:30 p.m.
10-5 Lake Shore........... 4:30 p.m.

10-9 Hamburg............... 4:45 p.m.
10-11 at South .............. 4:30 p.m.
10-12 at Amherst .............. 7 p.m.
10-15 Iroquois............... 4:30 p.m.
10-19 at North .............. 4:30 p.m.
e-mail: pnagy@beenews.com