By CHRIS SIERS ~ sports@t-g.com
As the season nears the mid-way point, the Cascade Lady Champions are heading to the second trip through the district slate with their perfect league record intact following Monday night’s 4-1 win over Forrest.
“They were a really tough opponent. We knew coming in tonight this wouldn’t be an easy game. We’re suffering from a lot of injuries tonight, but the girls are stepping up, playing hard and I’m proud of them,” Lady Champion coach Wendy Williams said.
Cascade’s Abby Harris found the back of the net on the first score of the night following a chance goal that was rebounded in front of the goal for the 1-0 lead barely 11 minutes into the match.
The Lady Champions doubled their lead on another goal by Rachel Phillips that managed to squeak past the Lady Rocket defense in the 29th minute.
That score held through the remainder of the half.
“In the first half, we didn’t pressure the ball. They beat us to every 50-50 ball,” Lady Rocket coach Jason Ellis said.
Cascade added a third score following a breakaway down the left flank by Abby Harris barely five minutes into the second half.
A fourth Lady Champion goal came from Eve Speirs in the 58th minute.
But Forrest didn’t go down without a fight.
Continuing to press the ball onto the Cascade end of the field, its as Maddie Stalneker who broke through and avoided the shutout with a score on a direct kick just outside the right corner of the box in the 71st minute.
Defensively, Cascade’s goal was to lock down Stalneker.
“No. 10 (Stalneker) is very strong. We knew we had to play some strong defense tonight and play more aggressively on the defensive end,” Williams added.
For now, momentum is riding on the Lady Champs’ side as they begin their second trip through the district slate.
“I feel like we’re coming together and our girls are learning to read each other and trust each other on the field,” Williams said.
Cascade gets a break in action until next Tuesday when the Lady Champions travel to Cannon County for a 5 p.m. match.
Forrest 0 1 — 1
Cascade 2 2 — 2
First Half
C — Abby Harris goal, 11th minute.
C — Rachel Phillips goal, 29th minute.
Second Half
C — Harris goal, 45th minute.
C — Eve Speirs goal, 58th minute.
F — Maddie Stalneker goal, 71st minute.
