Marasco, Rumfola lead Lady Marauders to win over Tigers

High school girls soccer

Prolific scoring forward Emma Marasco and top-tier goalkeeper CeCe Rumfola were the linchpins behind the Bishop Guilfoyle Academy girls soccer team earning its first appearance in the PIAA Class 1A state championship game last November.

BG came up short in the title match, 2-0 to Faith Christian, but with Marasco and Rumfola as key returning seniors on this season's team that is undefeated to date, the Lady Marauders have legitimate hopes of earning the state gold medal later this year.

Marasco scored a hat trick and Rumfola stopped 16 Hollidaysburg shots, including making a cluster of acrobatic saves in the first half Thursday evening, as BG posted a 5-1 Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference victory over the previously undefeated Lady Tigers on the Tom Irwin Jr. Field.

"We were outplayed for almost the entire first half, but CeCe kept us in the game, and Emma is our premier scorer,'' BG coach Joe DeLeo said. "Emma never takes a play off, and she hustles as much as anybody that I've ever seen.''

Hollidaysburg (4-1-2 overall and 3-1-1 in the LHAC), struck first on a goal by senior Sage Capone just over 30 minutes into the game, but it was all BG the rest of the way.

After Rumfola spent most of the first half diving from one side of the goal to the other to stop prime Hollidaysburg scoring chances, BG tied the score on a free-kick goal by senior defender Catie Cammarata with 7:19 left in the first half.

Less than a minute later, with 6:26 remaining, Marasco took an assist from Bella Noel and booted in a long, hooking shot that went into the cage off the foot of Hollidaysburg sophomore keeper

Ella Jadlocki, who appeared to lose her balance as she slipped to the ground while attempting to make the stop.

"She hasn't done that in her entire career,'' Hollidaysburg coach Tristan delGiudice said of the Lady Tigers' outstanding keeper. "That goal, and the free kick, got us moving in the wrong direction, and we just didn't come out and play in the second half like we did in the first half.

"If we had played the full 80 minutes like we did the first 30 minutes, we'd be having a different conversation,'' delGiuidice added.

Rumfola's wizardry in the cage was a big factor for BG.

"(Hollidaysburg was) playing hard, and putting a lot of pressure on us in the first half,'' said Rumfola, who registered 15 shutouts last season. "In the second half today, we knew that we needed to be more aggressive, and we came out with a better attitude.''

Rumfola stopped eight of nine shots in the first half when Hollidaysburg threatened to take control.

Once BG (6-0-1, 5-0-1 in the LHAC) got the momentum, the Lady Marauders, led by Marasco's two second-half goals, held on to it tightly.

Marasco scored on a quick kick from the left side of the cage after emerging from a scrum less than five minutes into the second half to give BG a 3-1 lead. Noel got her second assist of the game on that goal.

Senior midfielder Lily Sapp converted a slick assist from junior forward Meggie Ritchey with 25:15 left in the game to put BG ahead, 4-1, and Marasco completed her hat trick by cashing in a Ritchey assist and scoring on a fast break with 40 seconds left to set the 5-1 final.

"We started off slow in the first half, but then we stepped up our communication and we worked really well as a team,'' said Marasco, a four-year standout who has scored over 100 career goals and was an all-state selection last year, when she scored 43 times.

Both teams will be back in action next Tuesday night, when BG hosts Central Cambria and Hollidaysburg welcomes Richland.

"Hollidaysburg is a really good team,'' DeLeo said. "They're always competitive, and I'm happy to get a victory tonight.''

SCORE BY HALVES

Hollidaysburg 1 0 -- 1

Bishop Guilfoyle 2 3 — 5

First half: 1, H--Capone (Hayer), 9:28. 2, BG--Cammarata (free kick), 7:19. 3, BG--Marasco (Noel), 6:26.

Second half: 4, BG--Marasco (Noel), 35:33. 5, BG--Sapp (Ritchey), 25:15. 6, BG--Marasco (Ritchey), 0:40.

Shots on goal: Hollidaysburg 17, Bishop Guilfoyle 10.

Saves: Jadlocki, HOL, 5; Rumfola, BG, 16.

Records: Hollidaysburg (4-1-2, 3-1-1 LHAC); Bishop Guilfoyle (6-0-1, 5-0-1 LHAC).