By Dylan Butler
It was the St. John’s women’s soccer team’s biggest win in years. And the Red Storm’s 1-0 victory over No. 19 Syracuse Sunday at DaSilva Memorial Field may just be the stepping stone in the team’s quest to return to the Big East tournament for the first time since 1994.
Junior Erin Zambelli scored the game-winner on a breakaway in the 33rd minute, as St. John’s (4-6, 3-2 Big East Northeast Division) scored its first goal in its first victory over the Orangewomen in the program’s history.
“I thought the girls deserved this victory against a good nationally-ranked team,” said St. John’s head coach Ian Stone. “Today’s win is the end result of the hard work they have put in throughout the course of the season.”
The Red Storm defense, anchored by Jen Taylor and Courtney Rett, held a potent Syracuse offense to just seven shots, while keeper Tina Fogg made four saves to earn her third shutout of the season.
The win catapults St. John’s ahead of Syracuse into third place in the Big East Northeast Division. Syracuse fell to 6-4, 2-3. The Red Storm return to action Friday when they travel to No. 3 Notre Dame at 7 p.m.
St. John’s 2, Providence 1. Flushing resident Marissa Stork put the Red Storm ahead in the 20th minute and Lisa Kaczmarski also found the back of the net in a one-goal win over Providence (4-4-1, 0-3-1) Friday night.
SJU Football falls to Sacred Heart, 30-14
Injuries to quarterbacks Kyle Lauver and Marc Saracino made a difficult game at Sacred Heart nearly impossible for Bob Ricca’s team. Third-string quarterback Matt Millheiser went 6-for-17 for 83 yards and two touchdowns, but he couldn’t rally the struggling Red Storm, as St. John’s fell to 1-3 in the Northeast Conference Saturday in Fairfield, Conn.
Senior running back Marvin Royal led the way for Sacred Heart (4-0, 3-0) with 160 yards on 33 carries and three touchdowns, while quarterback Justin Holtfretter completed 10-of-23 for 138 yards and one touchdown as the Pioneers jumped ahead 30-7 at halftime.
Derek Jones garnered 99 yards on 27 carries for the Red Storm, who host five-time defending NEC champions Robert Morris (1-3, 1-1) Saturday at 1 p.m. The game marks the return of former New York Jets coach and Robert Morris head coach Joe Walton to Queens.
SJU’s Joseph garnered All-Big East honors
Shalrie Joseph, a senior defender on the St. John’s men’s soccer team, was named co-Big East defender of the week, the conference announced Monday. Joseph led the Red Storm to a pair of 2-1 overtime wins over Cal State Fullerton and Duke in the Philips Lighting/Adidas Classic at Rutgers University.
Joseph, a first-team All-Big East selection last year, was moved to sweeper when injuries hampered the Red Storm defense. St. John’s has allowed just four goals in nearly 800 minutes of play this season.
Zayas takes third at Metropolitan Championships
Jose Zayas led the St. John’s men’s cross country team to a sixth place finish at the 74th Metropolitan Intercollegiate Cross Country Championships held at Van Cortlandt Park over the weekend. Farleigh Dickinson won the overall competition.
Zayas, who is returning after redshirting last season, finished in third place with a time of 25:47.96, 14 seconds behind the leader. Sophomore Greg Mason placed 16th in a time of 27:09.25.
Sophomore Jen Lebowitz led the Red Storm women’s team, finishing 21st in a time of 20:06.93 and senior Lynn Medjuck took 26th place with a 20:19.34 performance. Columbia won the overall competition as St. John’s took ninth place.
The Red Storm return to action this weekend when they host the SJU Fall Invitational at St. John’s Oakdale, L.I. campus.
Women’s Volleyball
St. John’s 30-30-30, Providence 27-13-22. Junior Mischara Saunders led the Red Storm with 11 kills and seven digs in a Big East win at Alumni Hall Friday. Senior Sterie Varghese had a season-high 10 kills and senior Kristy Mercein added nine kills, 11 digs and four service aces. Sophomore Robyn Kurasaki recorded a team-high 13 digs and 40 assists in the win as the Red Storm improved to 13-2 and 4-1 in the Big East. Ayana Cadres had eight kills and Annie Cella added seven kills and a team-high 13 digs for Providence (3-12, 0-5).
John Jay 30-30-30, York 19-21-11. Isorys Dilone had 18 assists for John Jay (8-4, 4-2 CUNY).
Men’s Soccer
York 1, CCNY 0. Marc Meo’s header off Cheick Keita’s corner kick in the 48th minute was the lone goal in York’s 1-0 win Saturday. York improved to 5-1, 4-0 CUNYAC, while CCNY, which had a 14-6 edge in shots, fell to 7-2, 3-1.
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 143.
