AUSTIN DANFORTH

Assistant Sports Editor

MANCHESTER -- The Panthers hogged the possession and the chances, rattled off shot after shot and won corner after corner.

What Burr and Burton Academy made sure Hoosick Falls never had, though, was the lead.

The Bulldogs poached two goals against the run of play, one in each half, to upstage the reigning New York Class C state champion for a 2-1 win in the 12th Annual Lady Patriot Tournament final on Monday night at Applejack Field.

Senior midfielder Meghan Kardas struck 12 minutes into the second half for the eventual game-winner that withstood an all-out barrage in the game's final minutes.

"They were one of our three losses last year so they were a huge team to beat and we're so glad that we played our best game and beat them," said BBA sophomore Daisy Sullivan, the tournament's offensive MVP.

Burr and Burton's best game against the high-octane Panthers (4-1) was an entrenched one, with a packed in defense and and tight marking on Hoosick freshman forward Jordyn Haynes.

"Jordyn and [Grace] Delurey play so well off of each other that we needed to shut one of the two down," BBA (3-1-1) coach Dan DeForest said.

"We knew we had some pretty good people [on defense] who could play them head-up but it's that 2-v-1 stuff that they set up on the field that they're so effective at," he said.

As a result, the Bulldogs allowed the Panthers 15 shots on goal -- and a almost a dozen more just off the frame -- and 12 corners but only one score.

The hosts, in comparison, only had seven total shots with five on target.

Speedy sophomore forward Deirdre Walsh drew the task of marking Haynes and earned the tournament's defensive MVP trophy for her exploits.

"We told her, ‘You're wearing her sneakers. If she goes to get a drink, you go with her,'" DeForest said.

"They had a good gameplan," Hoosick Falls coach Tom Husser said. "We didn't capitalize on our shots. I don't know how many we put over the top of the bar."

The Bulldogs' opening goal came with 15 minutes 35 seconds left in the first half. Jordan Harmon headed the ball behind the Panthers' back line to Sullivan, who looked up to see the goalie off the line. With a touch to her left giving her a view of the vacant net, she slotted home to the far post.

Hoosick responded just under nine minutes later when Haynes crossed to Ali Martin who, after having her first shot blocked, reared back and tallied with her second effort.

After the break, Kardas collected a Rory Halligan cross at the left post and delivered a composed finish for the winner with 28:14 left on the clock.

"Actually, after I kicked in the goal I didn't really comprehend that it went in until Cara [Corvino] came and tackled me, basically," Kardas said. "Oh my God, I just scored the second goal.

"That was like my first goal ever."

Pressing for another equalizer, the Panthers' best chance came when Rachel Pine sent Haynes into the box with a through-ball with 10:46 left. Haynes appeared to be tugged down as she shot but the whistle never blew for a penalty.

Hoosick had as many as six players on the front line in the dying minutes but still could not break through with the tying goal.

"We knew if we could get the lead that come the last 10 minutes of the game they were going to push up because we weren't sending a lot of people forward," DeForest said.

Splitting time in goal, Samantha Sullivan and Joanna Jorgensen each made seven saves for BBA. Hannah Fricke stopped three shots for Hoosick Falls.

"It's fundamentals. Fundamentals is our game and usually we're a pretty smart soccer team but I don't think today we were very smart," Husser said.

"My hats are off to them, they're a good team," he said.