Skip to content Skip to sidebar Skip to footer

Sep. 16—There’s nothing like an early goal to set the tone and calm some nerves.

After its first shot of the contest, Terre Haute North’s girls soccer team knew it could go through the rest of its crosstown rivalry with Terre Haute South knowing they wouldn’t have to wait for the breakthrough, or, that the young Braves would gain confidence and counter-punch against the Patriots’ stout attack.

Junior Macy Stuck scored via a free kick just over two minutes into the contest and the Patriots didn’t look back on their way to a 5-1 victory over South. It was North’s ninth straight victory for The Ball trophy.

North (10-2, 3-1) dominated possession and the shots. As far as shots taken, South out-paced North 39-2, with 18 of the Patriots’ blasts on target. North also had the edge in corner kicks (5-1) as the Patriots commanded the chances.

“It was definitely good to get a goal right at the start. A lot of the younger girls were very nervous because they know how North-South can actually be. Most players want to walk out and have this be their best game. The early goal helped everyone out,” said Stuck, who scored her first goal of the season.

North coach Kyle Baker wants to see the Patriots be a bit more lethal in the penalty box given the chances they created, but he certainly isn’t going to argue with the result of the match.

“We struggled in the final third and they dropped a lot of numbers and that’s hard to figure out [how to solve] at this young age. We’ve had a problem being ruthless in the final third for most of the season and it showed up tonight,” Baker said.

Tough critic, given that North did hit the bar twice, and that South keeper Aiya Vaughn held on to several good North shots, but the Patriots didn’t wait long for their breakthrough.

Stuck stepped up for a 22-yard free kick at the 37:37 mark of the first half. Shooting just from the right of the goal, her shot was high and true, bending goalwards at the last moment, leaving temporary South goalkeeper Lauryn Greven no chance to stop the blast. Vaughn was to be substituted into the match, but the free kick came first. South coach Courtney Hubbard declined comment on why Greven started the match in goal.

Regardless of who was in goal, Stuck’s shot would have been hard to stop.

“An early goal is always unfortunate. It changes the entire energy of the game, but it was a beautiful goal and credit to her for making it,” Hubbard said.

South (3-4-2, 0-2-2) continued to absorb North’s pressure, and though North had plenty of chances, they weren’t able to get many breakthroughs via open play. That is until ambition met some good fortune at the 26:38 mark.

Maya McNichols decided to take a shot from long distance. Her shot was hit hard and was headed towards the left side of the goal. South defender Aubrey Switzer, marking one of North’s forwards in the box, had her body turned and the ball hit her unsighted. The shot deflected right and Vaughn, already committed to McNichols’ shot on the left, had no chance as it deflected in for an own goal.

It remained 2-0 at halftime, despite 19 shots by North and seven by dangerous Caroline Gauer alone, but the own goal was the only one from open play. That was a credit to South’s determination, but the Patriots wouldn’t be held back for long in the second half.

As it did in the first half, North scored with its first shot of the second. In a goalmouth scramble, Alyse Thompson ghosted into the box on a ball deflected by Cali Wuestefeld and slotted a loose ball into the lower right corner to make it 3-0 with 38:11 left in the match.

Barely more than two minutes later, Korynn Shore got on the board after a beautiful layoff in the box by Gauer. Shore lined it across Vaughn to the right side to make it 4-0.

North’s defense wasn’t tested much, but made plays when it had too. Ella Winchell kept the Braves off the board as she dispossessed Avery Pommier from behind on a one-on-one opportunity for Pommier midway through the second half.

North scored its fifth goal late when Wuestefeld lined it in off a feed from Sarah Downing. South scored with 3:30 when Pommier, who was menacing when the Braves could get the ball to her, drilled a shot from outside the box.

“We had our best team energy so far this season. We never quit. When you’re down that far, you score, and you still celebrate? It shows good camaraderie and good team spirit,” Hubbard said.

Both teams play Class 3A No. 8-ranked Columbus North next. The Braves travel to Columbus on Thursday. North hosts the Bull Dogs on Saturday.

“We’re definitely stepping up more and we’re seeing the younger girls notice what they need to do for the team and how they can help us out,” said Stuck on the state of the Patriots. “It’s exciting to know we’ll mostly have the same lineup next season and can do the same thing.”

Source