Southampton Girls Soccer Has Turned Its Season Around, But Will It Mean A Postseason Berth?

Because it played so well last season and had the majority of its team returning, the Southampton girls soccer team was ranked rather high in Division II this season and thus had a tougher schedule, especially the first few weeks of the season. The Mariners’ record bore that out. Through their first nine games, they were 2-6-1.

That included a 5-0 loss at Sachem East on October 2, a game in which the score may not have indicated it, but one that head coach Sean Zay said was an enlightening one for his players. Zay was proud of the way his team stood up against one of the largest schools in Suffolk County, even without one of their best players in senior tri-captain Carli Cameron.

Southampton has since then rattled off multiple consecutive victories, including, most recently, a 2-1 decision over West Babylon at home on Friday and then a 1-0 non-league victory at Center Moriches the very next day.

“It was just one of those moments where, if we play like this, we can beat anybody that’s out there,” he said of the loss at Sachem East. “We left there and haven't lost since.”

Senior Hallie Beeker scored the only goal of the game to spoil Center Moriches’s homecoming on Saturday, popping a ball over the Red Devils goalie in the second half. Cameron assisted on the goal, and junior Amy Jimenez made seven saves and was backed by a solid defensive effort for the shut out.

West Babylon scored the first goal on Friday, but junior Juliette Archer tied the game only a few minutes later, then senior Taylor Zukosky scored the game-winner with about five minutes remaining in regulation to give what should be a big victory for the Mariners in their playoff push.

The playoff picture is a bit unclear because of the power-point system, Zay said. Southampton is expected to win its games this week against Westhampton Beach and Amityville. While those games won’t necessarily garner a ton of points, victories would allow the Mariners to finish with a winning record.

With only three teams expected to move on to the postseason, both Babylon and Mattituck/Southold/Greenport are expected to be the only guarantees to advance to the postseason, and the final spot could be either Center Moriches or Southampton. Zay said both he and the Center Moriches head coach plan to petition Section XI should one of them not automatically get a bid.

“I don’t like the power-ranked system,” Zay said. “I feel like one of those two teams could be left out. We could be finishing the year winning seven straight. I think we have a five-game division winning streak right now. All of the ‘B’ schools are really good and it really should be a four-team playoff. Hopefully, it will be, but it’s too soon to tell if that will be the case.”

Zay said he has his team focusing on finishing out its regular season schedule strong and will let the playoffs settle itself out. Southampton hosted Westhampton Beach on Tuesday and will host Amityville as part of homecoming this Thursday, October 14, at 5 p.m.