Egan strikes gold; Churchville-Chili inches closer to divisional title

By PAUL GOTHAM

CHURCHVILLE, N.Y. — Gaven Egan figured it was worth the chance.

Less than six minutes remained in the second overtime of Tuesday’s Monroe County Division II matchup. Egan drifted to his right about 30 yards from goal with the ball between his feet. The Churchville-Chili senior lashed out with his right foot and struck the globe with a shot that looked destined for the back of the net upon impact.

And the ball found its way under the crossbar for the game winner.

“I checked my shoulder and I saw that there was a good amount of space in the middle,” Egan said of the play on which he scored for a 2-1 Churchville-Chili victory over Brighton. “I just turned and picked my head up. I was like ‘why not.’ Then shot it and it went in.”

Egan’s team-leading sixth goal of the season brought to a close a game that saw the Saints take the lead less 15 minutes into the match only to surrender that advantage with 6:25 left in regulation.

Golden Gaven! ⁦@CCCSDbsoccer⁩ 2-1 FINAL pic.twitter.com/ixmqwuPyzU

— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 29, 2021

“After regulation, it was we got to forget about it. We still got 20 minutes to play. Don’t concede; that’s the main thing. We knew if we played good defense we’ll get chances going forward. Just try to keep going and it will come eventually.”

Egan had an opportunity to end the game early in the first overtime session. Teammate Nick Rippe lofted a pass toward the left post that Egan went airborne to try and redirect. A flurry of chances ensued, but no goal.

Moments later, Brighton’s Chase Alexandre launched a blast from the right flank that was just off frame.

Churchville came this close in the first overtime. pic.twitter.com/0GcldK1NMi

— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 29, 2021

In what was a physical match, the sequence represented the game’s action that was more up and down than relying on sustained buildup.

“It’s a good Brighton team. They always make it a tough fight. The main thing was we wanted to calm it down, keep the ball and try to make them chase a little bit. Not just get into end-to-end play.”

Joey Napolitano nodded in an Elijah Bailey service from 35 yards out to start the game’s scoring.

14’ Joey Napilitano comes off the bench and converts on the free kick from Elijah Bailey. ⁦@CCCSDbsoccer⁩ 1-0 pic.twitter.com/zxQ4NXnYfx

— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 28, 2021

Adrian Storozynsky leveled the match for Brighton (4-4-1/3-2-1).

6:25 Adrian Storozynsky levels the match for ⁦@brightonbruins⁩ pic.twitter.com/cEvRT92QXo

— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) September 29, 2021

Churchville (7-2-0/5-1-0) won by the same count when the two teams me in their season openers. Rippe had a goal an assist in a game that saw the Saints erase a one-goal halftime deficit. Egan assisted on Rippe’s marker.

With Tuesday’s win, Churchville’s fifth straight, the Saints maintain a one-game advantage over Spencerport for the divisional title with four games remaining.

“It means a lot,” Egan said. “We love winning the division. We did it two years ago. It’s a big thing. It’s not sectionals, but it’s definitely something to be proud of so hopefully we can go on win it and get a good seed for sectionals.”

Churchville travels to play at Spencerport on Thursday. A 7 p.m. kickoff is scheduled.

Brighton hosts Gates-Chili on Thursday for another 7 p.m. start.