By Dean Russin

Sports Editor

ONEONTA — It was just like old times for the Oneonta High girls soccer team Tuesday.

Even with all the new faces.

Junior midfielder Leann Shaw matched her 2004 scoring totals with two goals and an assist, and first-year goalie Heather Graig stopped six shots to earn a shutout as the Yellowjackets beat Johnson City, 3-0, at the Wright National Soccer Campus.

"Last year, no one thought we were going to go as far as we did," said Shaw, a defender for the 2004 Jackets, who reached the Class A state final. "This year, they probably think the same thing just because we have such a young team. We st[an error occurred while processing this directive]ill have a strong team."

The Jackets (1-1) finished 16-4-3 last season and earned a sixth straight Section Four championship. Seniors Kate Jaffie, Maggie Exton and Maria Parrella along with juniors Shaw and Ashley Frederick are the only returners for OHS, which features 16 underclassmen on its 19-player roster.

OHS dropped its season opener, 2-1, at Owego on Saturday. Moments after the Jackets won their first game of the young season, Shaw sat a few feet from a goal trying to catch her breath.

"I’m a little dizzy," said Shaw, who had joined her teammates for a brief postgame run. "This isn’t my best game ever, but, I mean, I always try my best. I always try my hardest."

Senior forward Kate Jaffie put the Jackets ahead, 1-0, just under 10 minutes into the second half of Tuesday’s Southern Tier Athletic Conference match. Jaffie received a through ball from Shaw on the left side and beat the rush of JC goalie Liz Fox and a defender with a sliding grounder inside the near post.

Jaffie paid for her aggressiveness, though, as she collided with the defender.

"I was on the ground when I hit her," said Jaffie, who stayed down for a few minutes before limping to the sideline. Jaffie sustained a deep bruise in the middle of her left shin and sat out for the remainder of the game.

"My leg was up when she flew on me," continued Jaffie, who finished second on the team in scoring last fall with 10 goals and six assists. "I was like, ’Oh my God, I can’t move my leg!’ I thought I broke it at first. It will be OK, though. I’m trying not to be a baby."

Oneonta continued to pressure, leading to Shaw’s first goal with 8:24 to play. Freshman Cha Cha Naito’s short pass to the right side found eighth-grader Nora Walker, who set up Shaw over the middle.

"Nora put through a great ball," Shaw said. "She’s been great as an eighth-grader. She’s definitely a great help and it was a perfect ball. I had an open shot, so I took it."

Graig, who stands 12 short of matching the shutout total of 2004 goalie Breanna Gault, followed with her biggest save. Graig left the goal to stuff a breakaway up the middle by Danielle Hiza, sliding to smother the shot and drawing contact as the ball squirted left to an Oneonta defender.

"In the past, I haven’t been really that good on one-on-one’s ... and today, I think it was just a reaction and I was lucky I got my hand on the ball," said Graig, who is competing for time in goal with fellow sophomore Jordan Parks. "I’m definitely extremely confident for games in the future that I can make that save. I’ll probably come out a lot more knowing I can save them."

Shaw capped the scoring with 1:14 left, sending a liner at Fox that slipped through the goalie’s arms and between her legs.

"It went through her legs, but it was still a goal," Shaw said. "I mean, hey, we get what we get."

Second-year OHS coach Jerry Mackey seemed pleased with the effort against Johnson City (0-1).

"I’m just happy the girls this early in the season got to see some of the success of their efforts," said Mackey, whose team visits Maine-Endwell at 11 a.m. Friday. "I felt comfortable we’d get to where we want to go, but sometimes with young teams, you want to make sure they see some of the rewards so their work-rate stays high and the effort and attitude stays good.

"I thought Leann and Jess McCue and Lauren Payne just dominated the midfield," he continued. "We’re getting good play from our backs, and Heather comes off the line and makes some good saves. We feel like we’re going to be a tough team to beat."

ONEONTA 3, JOHNSON CITY 0

Oneonta 0 3 — 3

Johnson City (0-1, 0-1): None.

Oneonta (1-1, 1-1): Leann Shaw 2-1, Kate Jaffie 1-0.

Shots-corners: Johnson City 12-2; Oneonta 19-4.

Goalies: Liz Fox (J) 9; Heather Graig (O) 6.