A defensive state of mind in New York

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It takes a certain type of player to be defensive minded, to want to stop opponents and keep goals off the board. They do not always get a lot of glory or headlines, and there is not a lot of glitz or glamour to the positions, but these five players, four defenders and a keeper, are quite good at what they do.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='168621' first='Sofia' last='Caraballo'], Central Defender, Albert Magnus, Class of 2027</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":230126,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2024/09/Sofia-Caraballo.jpg?w=717" alt="" class="wp-image-230126" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: Jack Rivera</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Albert Magnus High and World Class FC center back is one of the top 2027 defenders in New York. Caraballo is a tough and gritty defender, who will clean up messes and do dirty work. She's physical, and a very good on-ball defender. She doesn't get bullied. She's also very good about knowing when to step, and she's quite good on balls in the air. She delivers a good ball from the back line, especially one over the top as it usually finds the feet of a teammate. She has an impressive skill set.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Elizabeth Delaney, Keeper, Bronxville, Class of 2027</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Delaney attends Bronxville High and she plays club for New York SC. She is incredibly fundamentally sound, as she seems to do everything well. She flows well with the attack, seeming to be in great position to make a stop, and she reads an attacker excellently. She gets vertical and low quickly and is hard to beat on the floor. She comes for balls quickly, she can do more than just clear them as she is comfortable with the ball at her feet, and she comes for corners and crosses with aggression. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hannah Jachman, Central Defender, Rye, Class of 2028</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The game seems to come naturally to Jachman. She has such an ease to the way she plays as she possesses so surely and calmly. She can carry the ball up the pitch incredibly well for a center back, and is quite confident in doing so as she will push up into the attacking third. She plays a beautiful ball forward as she can split defenders, play a clever ball into space and set her teammates up. Her ability to dispossess attackers, and do so lightning fast, is also very impressive. The freshman just played her first Rye High game a couple of weeks ago, and plays club for New York SC.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='24429' first='Erin' last='Palmeri'], Central Defender, West Islip, Class of 2025</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Palmeri is a modern day center back who is very comfortable in possession. She can make defenders miss, showing great agility and ability to push forward with the ball. She can break lines with the dribble and by delivering an accurate pass to a player moving in space as she anticipates where to go with the ball well. She is a strong defender with great speed as she recovers nicely, helps keep shape and will body a defender well. Her instincts for deflecting shots is tremendous as she always finds a way to make it difficult to get a shot off. She plays high school at West Islip and club at SUSA.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Abigail Stapleton, Outside Defender, Massapequa, Class of 2026</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Stapleton attends Massapequa High and plays club at New York Surf. She has speed that she uses in both directions as she tracks back excellently and does not let wide forwards beat her, and she can use it to get up the pitch. She's not just a straight-line runner, though. She is super agile and shifty and can really weave through traffic. She does not just play a ball up the side and hope. She picks the best ball to play and delivers a firm ball into the right spot, and sometimes she can play an over the top route one ball that is a thing of beauty. With great foot skills and physical defensive characteristics, Stapleton is a really good player.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->