Mavs beat Scots
Published 10:45 pm Thursday, October 6, 2011
SHORELINE — One puzzle has proven difficult to solve this season for the Shorecrest girls soccer squad — the Meadowdale midfield.
The Mavericks midfield once again gave Shorecrest fits while leading their squad to a 2-1 overtime win on an Erica Beaulieu goal Thursday night, leaving them jus
t a point out of third place in the Wesco 3A league standings.
“Their midfield moves the ball really well and they have a great knack for knowing where each other are,” Shorecrest head coach Mindy Dalziel said. “Maintaining possession for ourselves has been a problem, so I credit their midfield a lot. They are very effective at what they do.”
In seven other league contests, the Scots (6-2-1 league, 6-2-1 overall) have not lost. Yet in two games against Meadowdale (7-3, 7-3), the team has managed just one goal while dropping both contests.
Shorecrest, which entered holding second place in Wesco 3A to itself, looked to avenge its previous loss at Meadowdale earlier this season by doing a better job against the Mavericks’ pressure. They weren’t successful.
Emily Crichlow got the Mavericks out to a quick start with an unassisted goal in the eighth minute after she connected on a rebound in the middle of Shorecrest’s goal box. Her top corner shot squeeked past Scots goalkeeper Frida Swensen.
The score remained 1-0 going into the second half when the Shorecrest senior forward Bri Lasconia deposited a corner kick pass just past the Meadowdale goalie in the 56th minute.
The two teams defended well through the end of regulation to force extra time. But as overtime started, Meadowdale came out fast, according to coach Dalziel, and the pressure left Beaulieu with a virtual tap-in after she took control of an uncharacteristic rebound from keeper Ashley Beeson, who entered the game in second half. The goal was the first Beeson has yielded all season in shared time with Swensen.
“It was not a great first half for us but the tying goal changed the momentum,” admitted Dalziel. “(In overtime) we didn’t do what we needed to do defensively. They came at us hard and put us on our heels.
“Every game matters from here on out,” she added. “Win, loss or tie, every point counts as we approach seedings for the playoffs … We don’t like a loss but have to move on.”
