Naples’ Joshua Banks gets off a shot before Black Forest Academy defenders, from left, Jack Cox, Thomas Brady and Jongiln Park can stop him on Saturday, April 19, 2025, in Vicenza, Italy. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes )
VICENZA, Italy – It wasn’t a good sign for the Black Forest Academy girls soccer team when Jackson Shorey had a goal and an assist in the boys match to open Saturday’s play.
That just meant that Emerson Shorey had a bit more motivation in the girls contest.
Are the two siblings a little competitive with each other?
“Yes, very,” Jackson Shorey said with a tight smile after the Wildcat boys blanked BFA 4-0.
His sister was a bit more nuanced after scoring three times in the Naples girls’ 4-1 victory over the Falcons.
“We joke that for every goal he scores, I have to match it,” she said. “But we’re always there for each other.”
Naples’ Jazmin Miranda grimaces while connecting with the ball and the turf Saturday, April 19, 2025, during the Wildcats’ 4-1 victory over Black Forest Academy in Vicenza, Italy. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Black Forest Academy’s Esther Lee takes a shot after beating Naples’ defense to the ball Saturday, April 19, 2025, in Vicenza, Italy. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Naples’ Amalia Selph sends the ball toward the goal Saturday, April 19, 2025, in the Wildcats’ 4-1 victory over Black Forest Academy in Vicenza, Italy. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Naples’ Emerson Shorey scored three times Saturday, April 19, 2025, against Black Forest Academy and almost had a few more scores in the Wildcats’ 4-1 victory in Vicenza, Italy. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
GGirls
Emerson Shorey was a part of the Wildcats’ last two Division II title teams, earning All-Europe second-team honors as a freshman in 2023.
She scored a goal in the team’s title win last year but hasn’t been the main player whom opposing teams key on in previous seasons.
That’s certainly not the case this year.
“We love Emerson,” BFA coach Jack Wilson said with a wry smile. “We’re proud of her. We also tried our best to stop her scoring today. Hopefully, we’ll do a better job of that next time.”
Shorey didn’t wait long to equal her older brother’s goal total, blasting a shot into the net from a tough angle – near the end line about 20 yards from the goal. Her second tally was just as impressive, heading Jazmin Miranda’s corner kick into the net from the far side of the penalty area.
Goal No. 3 came early in the second half when her free kick from about 35 yards away took a tricky bounce and eluded the Falcons’ keeper before finding the net.
She accounted for part of the Wildcats’ last goal as well, taking a shot from about 30 yards out that deflected off a BFA defender to Ava Williams. The senior striker took the ball in the air and kicked it in.
The Falcons, outshot 30-10 on the day, got on the scoreboard with a little more than 10 minutes left when Anna Yancey found the Naples goalie too far in front of the goal and launched a high-arching kick from about 30 yards out into an empty net.
Naples coach Maria Oropallo said she likes where her team is at.
“We’ve won four in a row, so yes,” she said. “Our strengths are Emerson Shorey, a strong midfield including Jazmin Miranda and Emma Heavey, good defenders … we have a lot of strengths.”
Naples’ Jackson Shorey gets the ball past Black Forest Academy defender Jack Cox, but didn’t manage to get the ball into the net on this play Saturday, April 19, 2025, at Vicenza, Italy. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Black Forest Academy’s Levi Chapman takes a tumble after colliding with Naples’ Anders Cromwell on Saturday, April 19, 2025, in Vicenza, Italy. BFA’s Nate Maddox looks on. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Naples' Alessandro Vavra sends a free kick Saturday, April 19, 2025, past a wall of Black Forest Academy defenders, from left: Ilias Sultanov, Levi Chapman and Jack Foster (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Boys
The Wildcats scored their first two goals – and had several more good chances – off set pieces and gave goalkeeper Joey Randazzo most of the match off.
BFA didn’t get off a shot on goal in the opening half as Naples built a 1-0 lead. Alessandro Vavra put his team on the board by lofting a free kick about 20 yards from the goal over a wall of defenders and off the keeper’s hands and into the net.
Falcons coach Joe Batluck said his tired team severely cut back on counterattacks, having just played Vicenza late Friday night after a series of travel delays and issues getting on the base.
“That strategy worked in the first half,” he said, because the team trailed only 1-0 despite getting outshot 13-0.
A few Wildcat shots either hit the outside of the goal or the football goal post just on top of it. Or they were saved by BFA’s goalie duo of Dash Dockrey and Nehemiah Perryman.
Naples scored again early in the second half on a set play as Finn Stephens headed in a corner from Shorey.
The Wildcats’ final two goals came from their two most skilled players just making solo runs on goal. Shorey beat two defenders in a short run from the right side of the goal and then fired almost point blank into the net. Vavra earned his second goal by taking a throw in from the left side of the goal and then dribbling through five BFA defenders before booting the ball in.
