The temperatures dropped and the rain continued during Thursday afternoon's girls soccer game at Arthur L. Johnson High School in Clark. Fortunately for Cranford, all it took was one goal, a long shot by senior Michelle Gargiulo from atop the 18-yard line with about 11 minutes left in the first half. It was enough.
With that goal the Cougars raised their record to 10-1-1 and claimed the first Union County Conference Mountain Division title by beating the Crusaders (9-2-2).
The shot deflected off a Crusader defender and caromed into the net. Jamie Webb and Jen Fulger added assists.
“It was a nice shot, but it helped out getting a little deflection off the defender," said Cranford coach Jen Michewicz. “It was a great way of getting the momentum and taking the lead early."
“It was a nice shot, but it helped out getting a little deflection off the defender," said Cranford coach Jen Michewicz. “It was a great way of getting the momentum and taking the lead early."
This was a difficult day for both teams, who had to fight to just keep their footing in the rain.
“Scoring first helped’’ added Michewicz as her team celebrated, then raced for the bus to get out of the rain. “It was enormous. It was a great way to take the momentum, to take the lead early because on a day like this anything can happen because the conditions are very difficult to play in. We were lucky to get that first goal.’’
Keeper Lauren Grandal helped deliver the team’s seventh shutout with three saves. It was Cranford’s ninth straight win.
“I was going my hardest, just trying to get open,’’ said Gargiulo, who has four goals on the season. “That one goal kept us going.’’
The Cougars, as No. 5 seed in the Union County Tournament, now prepare to take on No. 4 Union on Saturday at 3 p.m. at Union.
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