Mending McCaffrey gives Spartans girls yet one more weapon on the pitch

The hardest part for Annie McCaffrey is staying patient. She wants to go full speed. She wants to be her old self.

Nearly a year passed between games for Wyomissing’s midfielder. She sat out basketball. She missed track. She had to wait for soccer to come around again.

“It just feels so good to be out there,” McCaffrey said. “It’s been a long time.”

McCaffrey had the best moment of her comeback so far Thursday night. The sophomore set up Hannah Hurleman’s overtime goal that lifted Wyomissing over Daniel Boone 3-2 in a non-league game at Birdsboro.

The game-deciding play was a flashback to McCaffrey’s freshman year, when she delivered nine goals and seven assists for the District 3 champions.

McCaffrey made a move in the midfield to create space, fought off a charging defender and flipped a dangerous shot on frame. Boone keeper Hope Starolis made a leaping save off the crossbar. Hurleman swept in to score 2:28 into the extra period.

“As soon as we were in the huddle for overtime, I felt it,” McCaffrey said. “I felt it coming. I felt like it was on me. I was able to beat those girls and made the opportunity for Hannah.”

McCaffrey suffered a cracked left kneecap near the end of last season. She was on crutches for four months and couldn’t help Wyomissing’s basketball team as it reached the county final.

When she tried to compete in track in the spring, she endured stress fractures in her ankles. That meant more sitting and waiting.

“It’s nice to have her back,” Wyomissing coach Rachel Hoffman said. “I know she’s still hurting some. Her fitness is coming around. It’s in little spurts. I think she’s doing a great job.”

This was a rematch of last year’s county semifinals, which defending champ Wyomissing won 4-2. These teams figure to be in the mix again when the trophy is lifted this year.

Wyomissing jumped on Boone with two goals in the opening five minutes. Izzy Marshall put home a left-footed rocket from the left side of the box to open the scoring. Hurleman deflected Marshall’s pass over Starolis to make it 2-0.

Marshall and Hurleman have been as dynamic as expected. The two have combined for 13 goals and five assists in five games.

Boone (4-2), the frontrunners in Berks II, recovered from that initial wave thanks to sophomore sensations Anna Buckwalter and Maggie Holloway.

Buckwalter scored off Gabby Fontana’s corner and Holloway finished off a pass from Amy Schafer to draw the Blazers even at halftime. Buckwalter is tied with Hamburg’s Isabelle Wilkes for the league lead with eight goals.

Coach Mark Reightneour said he believes Boone can play with anyone in Berks. This matchup proved he was right. The Blazers had some dangerous chances for the go-ahead goal in the second half. It was a good test for both sides.

“We want to put these schools on our schedule because they challenge us,” Hoffman said. “It really prepares us for the competition we’ll see in district playoffs. We knew coming in it was going to be a battle and it was.”

Wyomissing has four returning All-Berks players lining up with two freshmen starters: Abby Noey and Sophia Zeppos. McCaffrey is coming off the bench to limit her minutes as she regains her fitness.

The beginning of each game is another test of McCaffrey’s patience.

“Sitting on the bench for those first 10 minutes is hard,” she said. “I want to get out there and help my team. To support them. Make opportunities for them. It’s almost like I can’t do anything.”

McCaffrey was on the field when it mattered most Thursday night. For a moment, she could forget about all the setbacks and just play.

Maybe she’s not her old self yet, but she will be soon.

“There’s definitely still a little pain,” McCaffrey said. “I can feel it getting better each day. I’m getting back into shape each game.”