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Athlete of the Week: Lakeland’s Jessica Janosz
(by Tom Fiore - Sports Writer - October 22, 2008)
Lakeland goalkeeper Jess Janosz is the consummate team player. Even following her stellar performance in her team’s dramatic win over DePaul in the Passaic County Tournament semi final round, where she made 18 saves which forced the game to be decided by penalty kicks, Janosz’s first comments were about her teammates and how they played hard, never gave up, and helped her do what she was able to accomplish.
"I had faith in my team and even though we didn’t score in regulation time, we made one hell of a run. I give my teammates all the credit, especially the penalty kickers. Amazing, I couldn’t have done any of this without them," said Janosz after the game. "This was such an intense game. It was so close and even when we beat them in conference, we beat them in the last minute, with one goal in overtime. They are a very good team."
The two teams toiled for 100 minutes of scoreless soccer. Janosz was under constant pressure from the upstart Spartans who dominated the play for most of the game. Consider in the same amount of time her counterpart, Erica Keil, had six saves, 12 less than the Lakeland standout. If that weren’t enough, both had to withstand two rounds of penalty kicks, where the keeper is alone on an island with no one to help them. It is just there skill and their instincts, honed after years of playing the game.
"You have no idea how much pressure there is on the goalies and the kickers," said Janosz. "I have to clear my head because if you let your mind take over for you, you can psyche yourself out. Then I move from side to side, maybe just to psych the kicker out and then it’s just a matter of trying to read how her hip turns."
Lakeland has had a powerful girl’s soccer team for years now and they have been a force in the Northern Hills Conference, winning it the past two years and leading it this year. Still, County and State titles have eluded them.
The state is tough with programs like Northern Highlands, the team that eliminated the Lancers in 2007 and Ramapo in their bracket, but first things first. They are in line to win the county title for the first time since 1995. All they have to do is beat Wayne Valley, winner of the title, or a share of it, in three of the past four years. The game will be played on their home field, but to Janosz and the rest of the Lancers, that’s just something they will have to put out of their mind, as they remain focused.
"Two years ago, we lost in the finals of the county tournament with about a minute left to play, so this would mean the world to us," said Janosz.
Tom Fiore’s email address is fiore@northjersey.com
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