Eustace girls advance in Coaches tournament

With the wind in her face, Taylor Baranowsky knew she needed a little extra effort.

That same approach lifted the Bishop Eustace girls' soccer team to its most impressive victory of the season.

Baranowsky's dramatic penalty kick enabled 15th-seeded Bishop Eustace to upset second-seeded Eastern on Friday in the first round of the South Jersey Soccer Coaches Association tournament.

Baranowsky's goal, which hit the crossbar and ricocheted down just inside the line, gave the Crusaders a 5-3 victory in penalty kicks.

The teams had played to a 1-1 tie through 80 minutes of regulation and 20 minutes of sudden-death overtime.

"I knew I was going into the wind, so I had to hit it a little harder," Baranowsky said. "When it went over the line, it was such a thrill."

Bishop Eustace (6-7-2) took a 1-0 lead in the first half on a sweet goal by Dana Bernetick, who volleyed a corner kick from Sarah Martella into the back of the net in the 10th minute.

Eastern (8-1-4) staged a furious rally with the wind at its back in the second half. The Vikings tied the score with just 5 minutes, 34 seconds remaining in regulation on Danielle Genay's goal on a high shot from around 25 yards.

But Bishop Eustace's defense withstood Eastern's pressure, thanks largely to a strong game from sweeper Emily Hansinger.

"She was phenomenal," Eustace coach Andrew Schmitt.

Eastern coach Jamie McGroarty said his team did a good job of maintaining possession in the second half but couldn't convert its opportunities.

"That's been the story of our season," McGroarty said. "We have control, we win a lot of balls, but we can't finish."

Bishop Eustace received penalty-kick goals from Hansinger, Bernetick, Caroline O'Dee, and Brittany Stone to take a 4-3 lead. Eastern got goals from Sydney Cetrullo, Kathleen Lyons, and Eve Seidman, but the Vikings missed on their fourth try.

That set the stage for Baranowsky's winner, which advanced the Crusaders to a second-round game against the winner of Saturday's clash between seventh-seeded Gloucester Catholic and 10th seed Cherokee.

"This is really big because we feel like we don't get a lot of respect," Baranowsky said. "This shows that we can play with teams."

Bishop Eustace   1 0 0 0 – 1

Eastern   0 1 0 0 – 1

Bishop Eustace advances on penalty kicks, 5-3.

Goals: BE-Dana Bernetick; E-Danielle Genay.

Saves: BE-Carolina Carini 10; E-Jax Buckley 4.