Brought on specifically for tie-breaker, Cathedral and John Connon goalkeeper Kapadia saves three penalty kicks before converting her own to help team beat Bombay Scottish 3-2 and enter U-16 Div I semis
Cathedral and John Connon’s Vedita Kapadia saves a penalty kick against Bombay Scottish in Bandra on Tuesday. Pic/Atul Kamble
Riding high on skipper Vedita Kapadia’s heroics between the posts, Cathedral and John Connon (Fort) booked their place in the semi-finals of the girls U-16 Division-I Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) inter-school football tournament after a thrilling 3-2 win over Bombay Scottish (Mahim) via tie-breaker at Wings Sports Centre, Bandra, on Tuesday.
Goalless encounter
The quarter-final saw both teams unable to break the deadlock in regulation play despite some close chances.
Cathedral then pulled off a masterstroke by switching out first-choice goalkeeper Aadhya Laungiani with team skipper Kapadia for the shootout — a move that paid rich dividends.
Kapadia displayed great composure under pressure and pulled off three crucial saves. She stopped Divina Shah’s shot which was aimed at the centre of the goal, then dived left to deny Sarah Gupta before blocking Freya Maru’s attempt with her feet.
Only Nikunja Sonthalia and Ananya Vasant of Bombay Scottish could beat Kapadia in the shootout.
For Cathedral, Elisha Mandot, Anasurya Raju, and custodian Kapadia herself converted from the spot while Shreyasi Daga failed to find the back of the net.
Kapadia later told mid-day that she wasn’t new to such situations.
Pressure factor
“There is always pressure, but I have been standing as a goalkeeper during shootouts since last year. I just tried to stay calm and watch the ball,” she said.
In another quarter-final match played at the same venue, Jamnabai Narsee (Juhu) secured a solid 2-0 win against VCW AVM (Bandra) to book their semi-final spot.
Keya Patel opened the scoring with a strike into the bottom right corner in the 16th minute after which Nehchal Bright doubled the lead with a powerful shot into the top left corner to ensure a smooth passage for the Juhu outfit.
In another last-eight encounter, Smt RSB Arya Vidya Mandir (Juhu) cruised past Lakshdham School (Goregaon) with a 5-0 win. Radhika Vyas netted a brilliant hat-trick, while Meera Toolsidass and Narmadaa Missra added one each to seal the win.
In the fourth quarter-final, Bombay Scottish (Powai) beat St Xavier’s High School (Mira Road) 3-0.
Ciona Biju netted a brace, while Harshita Arun added the third goal.
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