Written by: Michael Lewis
UNIONDALE, N.Y. – The Long Island Rough Riders scored early and often as they rolled to a 7-0 victory over Paisley Athletic in a USL W League game at Mitchel Athletic Complex on Wednesday night.
Jessica Garziano led the way with a brace and an assist. Second-half substitute Nora Basile contributed two goals and Millie Davies, Luciana Setteducate, Lia Howard added one goal apiece.
The Rough Riders (23 points), who entered the day in second place in the Metropolitan Division remained unbeaten at 7-0-2, while Paisley (13) dropped to 3-3-4.
The result was in stark contrast to the first encounter between the two sides on June 10, as they battled to a wild, 4-4 draw in Kearny, N.J.
Long Island has outscored its foes this season, 53-8.
Goalkeepers Nicolette Pasqurella and Natalie Medugno, who each played a half, shared the clean sheet.
It didn’t take the Rough Riders very long to find the net as Garziano struck for her first goal of the evening in the third minute, when she sent a rocket from the top of the penalty area over the hands of goalkeeper Rebecca Kessler and into the roof of the net.
Long Island was given a gift goal in the 11th minute when Davies sent an innocent-looking shot from 23 yards toward the goal that Kessler allowed to slip through her hands into the net for a two-goal advantage.
Garziano earned her second goal and seventh of the season with another shot from the top of the box in the 19th minute, giving the hosts a 3-0 lead.
The onslaught continued in the 25th minute when Setteducate tallied her 12th goal of the campaign, from 10 yards, off a Garziano feed, for a four-goal margin.
Howard got into the act in the 57th minute as she latched onto a long right-wing feed from Gianna Paul. The forward moved to her left before depositing the ball into the back of the net for her eight goal of the season and a 5-0 lead.
Only minutes after coming on as a substitute, Basile, fired home a bullet, off a precision right-wing cross from fellow substitute Alyse Then for a 6-0 advantage in the 65th minute.
Basile connected for her second of the night five minutes later, turning a Howard pass into a goal from six yards for a seven-goal margin and her third goal of the campaign.
Haitian international forward Danielle Etienne, who started for Paisley, is the daughter of former Rough Riders star and one-time Haitian national team forward Derrick Etienne, a member of the team that captured the 2002 USL Pro League title. Etienne might have had the visitors’ best scoring opportunity of the night, but her strike was caught by Medugno in the 87th minute.
In the first game of the doubleheader, the Rough Riders men defeated the Westchester Flames, 2-1, to take over the Metropolitan Division lead in a USL League Two encounter.
Wednesday night’s affair was the start of a four-game homestand that will end the regular season for the women.
They will host Morris Elite SC in a top of the table Metropolitan Division clash on Sunday, June 23 at 3:30 p.m. AC Connecticut on Wednesday, June 26 at 6 p.m. and Cedar Stars Academy on Sunday, June 30 at 3:30 p.m.