Molloy surprises St. Peter’s (SI), 3-0

On wet grass and under pouring rain, Queens representative Molloy took advantage of a slippery ball to surprise Staten Island’s St. Peter’s, 3-0, and win a spot in the city soccer championship game. However, a game-ending scuffle - and the three red cards it prompted - may have implications on Molloy’s chances in the next round.
Molloy will play either Regis or Fordham Prep in the final on November 1, at St. John’s University. Which team emerged from the other CHSAA semifinal was decided the night of Tuesday, October 28, but the game ended after press time.
With three minutes left in the Molloy game, senior Andrew Rodriguez objected to a St. Peter’s tackle and appeared to throw a punch in the direction of an opposing player. A short sequence of shoves ensued at the near sideline, and referees called the game after the conflict cleared. Awarded red cards and suspended for the final contest were Rodriguez and Molloy senior Cristian Sande. St. Peter’s senior goalkeeper Christopher Siebel received another red card.
Even though Molloy entered its October 28 contest on a roll - it beat Staten Island’s Farrell 5-0 in the quarterfinals - it was up against a strong St. Peter’s team that had defeated St. Francis Prep handily in the quarters and given up only two goals all season. Moreover, St. Peter’s spent the majority of the first half with the ball.
It was junior attacker Gregory Davis who broke through - twice. In the 31st minute of a relatively sloppy game, with the ball bouncing around the box and St. Peter’s unable to clear it or catch it, he headed one into the lower left corner of the net, and was mobbed by teammates soon after.
Davis’ head was golden again in the 44th minute. Off a corner kick from the left side, he cleanly headed the ball into the left side of the net, this time more emphatically. Molloy, which went just 5-3-3 in the regular season but finished ahead of three other Brooklyn/Queens teams, was now the heavy favorite.
In the first half, momentum was largely on St. Peter’s side. Not long before Davis’ first goal, a leftward chip from midfield by St. Peter’s junior Kris Bistre spun toward the goal and skipped out of the goalkeeper’s hands in a moment of panic for Molloy. In the 37th, St. Peter’s senior Cemil Turan followed a bouncing ball past a Molloy defender, and launched a strong left-footed strike from the edge of the box. He just missed.
Before the team’s first goal, Molloy’s only real chance came in the 28th minute, when Davis’ free kick knocked off the crossbar.
After Davis’ second goal, however, it was clear that the pace of the game had shifted. Balls were more often than not on the Staten Island side of the field. The Molloy fans, attending in strong numbers considering the stormy weather, increased their pitch. When Glenn Whelan added an emphatic strike into the net in the 56th minute, he slid on his knees toward the crowd in an exercise of pure relief.
The whole game, meanwhile, was plagued by strong winds. Off of goal kicks, defensive clearances, corner kicks, and long-range shots, balls repeatedly shot off in unexpected directions - usually toward the south stands. Despite the conditions, there never seemed to be any danger of a postponement or a suspension of play - until the game-ending scuffle, that is.
Molloy last won the city soccer title in 2004. St. Peter’s has never won it. Fordham Prep, still in contention as of the conclusion of the Molloy game, is the defending champion.