Patriot 98s work overtime - and win - in Labor Day kickoff

Sparked by a dramatic late goal by Jena Pelinkovic and a strong team-wide effort, the Patriot 98s began their season in impressive fashion by capturing the championship of the Yorktown Labor Day Tournament with a victory over the Lagrange SC Cheetahs. "I was very impressed with the way girls fought back," coach John Sanchez said. "Having five new players, the girls are still getting to know each other on the field, (but) I saw a lot of good things in each of our players. They showed a lot of character and determination, the way they played until the final whistle."

After winning their four round-robin games by an aggregate score of 6-1, the Patriots found themselves down to Lagrange, 1-0, in the waning seconds of the final. Sarah Williams took a long throw in, in deep territory where Jena received the ball, pivoted and blasted a shot high over the goalkeeper’s head from about 20 yards out to equalize the game to send the game into penalty kick to determine the winner. In the ensuing penalty-kick shootout, the Patriots got goals from Corinne Burns, Hannah Stein and Abby Dolgos, and the ultimate game-winner from Annabelle Allen. Back in the goal, Jena stopped two Lagrange shots to secure the victory on a long and pulsating day in northern Westchester.

The Patriots begin their regular season this Sunday on the road vs. Brooklyn Patriots in their Tri - League game.