Venkatesh speaks loudly in Vikings' 1-0 win over Old Lyme
Sep. 9—EAST LYME — Sometimes, East Lyme girls' soccer coach Rachel Redding will double-check with senior co-captain Riddhi Venkatesh to make sure she's talking to her teammates.
"She'll talk to them on the field where we can't hear it and I'll be like, 'Riddhi, are you talking?' And she'll be like, 'Yeah.' And I'll ask the players and they'll be like, 'Yeah, yeah,'" Redding said. "Because it's soft-spoken, but she does it."
A fleet forward who also runs track for the Vikings, Venkatesh scored East Lyme's only goal Saturday afternoon in a 1-0 victory over Old Lyme in the first game of the annual boys' and girls' soccer doubleheader between the schools.
Venkatesh got away down the left sideline and struck a line drive to the opposite corner of the goal just 9 minutes, 26 seconds into the first half.
She narrowly missed a few other opportunities, one over the crossbar and one just past the left post. But goalie Morgan Dube finished with four saves to preserve her second straight shutout for the Vikings (2-0).
Venkatesh also had a goal and an assist in East Lyme's 7-0 season-opening victory over Ellington on Thursday.
"I think it all starts from the back," Venkatesh said, asked to describe the goal. "Our defense did a great job getting the ball up and then our midfielders do a good job getting it to me for the final shot, so it was really like a team effort."
Venkatesh, who captains the team along with fellow seniors Lily and Summer Antonino and Ava Lombardo, said East Lyme's chemistry and teamwork are its greatest strength. A number of Vikings played in a summer league together, she said.
"I mean, every year we lose really good seniors, but we work really hard in the summer to get the team together to work hard and make up for the losses. I think the summer really helps with our team," Venkatesh said.
"... I think our team is working well together. We pick each other up. We just let each other know we're there for each other. I think that's the biggest key to our success."
Redding got goosebumps in describing Venkatesh's contributions.
"It's her leadership qualities. She's got such great leadership on and off the field," Redding said. "Like what she does on the field is amazing, but the girls respect her so much on and off the field. You could see how hard she works."
It was East Lyme's second straight win over Old Lyme after registering a 5-2 victory in last year's rivalry game. The three games prior to that were decided by one goal each.
"Listen, I love playing Old Lyme," Redding said. "It's such a great competition for both teams. It's been years in the making that we've been doing this. It wasn't our best game, but Old Lyme never gave up.
"We missed some opportunities but it's OK, we'll come back. We'll work on it and keep getting stronger."
East Lyme outshot Old Lyme 13-4.
Olivia Kelly made eight saves for Old Lyme, which was opening the season. Kelly, a junior, missed the bulk of last season with a torn ACL.
