Leana Ruiz and Kaleigh Darby team up to lead St. Anthony's
Kaleigh Darby of St. Anthony's, left (blue headband), gets congratulated by teammates after scoring a goal in the first half of a Nassau-Suffolk CHSAA girls soccer game against Sacred Heart Academy at St. Anthony's on Monday. Credit: James Escher
Kaleigh Darby put her hand up like she had the answer to a question in class, but she wasn’t waving down a teacher. Darby was calling for the ball from Leana Ruiz off a corner kick, and wasn’t going to let an opportunity to score, go to waste.
“I raised my hand and I said, ‘Play it to me,’ and she played it directly to me,” Darby said. “I didn’t really see anyone on me so I just flicked it with the inside of my foot, and it went over the goalie’s head and in.”
The defensive midfielder scored the lone goal when she one-timed a corner kick in the air from Ruiz to give host St. Anthony’s a 1-0 victory over Sacred Heart in a CHSAA girls soccer match on a rainy Monday.
“I just wanted to score, I love scoring,” Darby said. “I don’t score often, so when I get those chances, I have to bury it.”
“I saw her running to the post and I saw her open so I went for her,” Ruiz said. “Most of the time I just look for who’s open and she’s always open and I can trust her to finish it.”
Darby’s goal with 10:56 left in the first half provided that additional spark St. Anthony’s needed for the victory.
“It really set the tone and I think we pretty much dominated after,” Darby said. “It jacked us up and we had all the confidence in the world.”
St. Anthony’s, the winners of the last four state CHSAA titles, hasn’t lost a game since the 2019 season. The Friars improved to 8-0-2 overall and 5-0-1 in league play. They have compiled a 43-0-2 record over their last 45 games.
That previous success continues to be what every ensuing team tries to emulate.
“It’s so much motivation, we don’t want to be the class that doesn’t keep winning,” Darby said. “We want to continue the theme of St. Anthony’s always being on top and I think this game will show we are a tough opponent for whoever’s next.”
The St. Anthony’s backline, including Amanda Dolan, Julia Perez and sisters Emily Hiney and Molly Hiney, had a strong game to limit Sacred Heart’s scoring chances. Goalkeeper Madalyn Salkowsky made two saves. Kate Boyle had seven saves for Sacred Heart (5-2).
“It’s a tradition here and it’s all on them,” coach Sue Alber said. “They have to continue building and growing as a team and hopefully by playoffs, we are at our peak and off and running.”
