by Jess Donohoe
Our very own Oceanside Girls Varsity Soccer made history not just once but twice in their 2025 season. The girls won their second consecutive Nassau County Championship, as well as Oceanside Girls Soccer’s first Long Island Championship. This follows on the heels of last year’s spectacular season when the team won their first County championship since 1979 on a double overtime game winner by Kaylin Harrington.
After the big win last year, many people doubted that the team could duplicate its success this season. Last year the team had 11 seniors, 6 of which were starters. Coaches and parents were wondering if the girls could do it again and become Nassau Champions for the second year in a row.
The hard work began in the off season. With coaches Danielle Chiera and Tina Pumo at the helm, the girls started their pre-season work back in March with one practice a week. Slowly, the coaches added more practices as the spring progressed. By the time July came around, the team was practicing three times a week working on agility, speed, shooting, and ball work.
Overall, the team finished the regular season with a record of 8-6-3 finishing 3rd in the AAA/AA 1 conference, which helped secure their spot as the 1st seed in playoffs. In their AAA/AA 1 bracket, some examples of teams that the girls play are: Massapequa, Macarthur, Garden City, and South Side.
The season was so rewarding because success didn’t come easily. Overall, the team finished the regular season with a record of 8-6-3 finishing 3rd in the AAA/AA 1 conference, which helped secure their spot as the 1st seed in playoffs. Some key regular games included their first win of the season which was on September 9th against Port Washington with a final result of 4-0. Another big win was against Massapequa at home on September 12th, which was a close game with a score of 1-0. OGVS (Oceanside Girls Varsity Soccer) also had some tough losses during the regular season against Syosset, MacArthur, and Garden City, but as those same teams came around to face OHS for the second time, the girls defeated them all: a 2-0 against Syosset on Homecoming, a 3-0 defeat of MacArthur at home, and a 1-0 defeat of Garden City on an amazing goal by Ava Bowers that ended Garden City’s undefeated season.
This year’s roster was stacked with so much talent and dedicated players that it makes it difficult to pick out “key players”, but lets look at some of the team leaders: Ava Bowers had a total of 11 goals in the season with 3 assists which helped her get an All county award for her senior season. Bowers is also verbally committed to play division two soccer at Barry University in the fall. Ryann Zydor had 7 goals and 6 assists, working well with both Bowers and Catherine Evans up top. Zydor is verbally committed to play division three soccer at SUNY New Paltz and also was awarded All County for her last season with OGVS. Molly Boller was awarded both Scholar Athlete and All County. Boller had 5 goals and 6 assists, working well with Gianna Visone and Chloe Polito in center mid. Chloe Polito was awarded All County Honorable Mention along with Gianna Visone and goalie, Ella Murray. Chloe Polito was out for a little in the playoff season due to a concussion that occurred in the Nassau County Championship at Farmingdale State College against Syosset but was able to play for the team during the State Championship against Cicero- North Syracuse. Goalie Ella Murray had a total of 72 saves and 8 shut outs during the season making her a key player on the field as a junior. Gianna Visone had 6 goals and 4 assists as a 3 year member of Oceanside soccer as a junior. The team’s two center backs, Madeline McMurray and Jordyn Davis, were awarded All Conference with 8 shut outs during the seasons.
Securing the #1 seed in their bracket for playoffs, the girls played Valley Stream Central, Port Washington, and Syosset on their path to the county title. OHS beat Valley Stream Central and ended their undefeated season with a big 5-1 win in the quarterfinals at home. In the semi-finals at Cold Sprint Harbor, the girls played Port Washington and had another big 6-0 win securing their spot in the Nassau County finals. On November 2nd, the team made history being the first team in Oceanside Girls soccer history to win the Nassau County Championship two years in a row. This win allowed them to go to the Long Island Championship and play the the Suffolk County champion, Northport. Catherine Evans scored the game winning goal in overtime over Northport which, once again, made the 2025 Oceanside Girls Soccer team one for the history books, being the first EVER team in the history of girls soccer at OHS to win the Long Island Championship. Unfortunately, the amazing season ended at Cortland against Cicero-North Syracuse when Cicero-North scored in double overtime in the pouring rain.
Next season the girls will have big shoes to fill as their senior class leaves and the class of 2027 steps up. Will they do it again? Can they go all the way? We can’t wait to find out.