LeBlond defeats Savannah in last regular season contest; turn attention to district tournament
By Calvin Silvers
Believe it or not, the end of the regular season for high school girls soccer came to a close on Thursday, as the Savannah Savages traveled the short distance to take on the Bishop LeBlond Golden Eagles.
The Golden Eagles entered the contest on a one game win streak, looking to carry some momentum into the Class 2 District 8 Tournament. That wish was granted as LeBlond walked away with a 7-1 victory.
The first half was filled with action, as it took less than 10 minutes before the first goal of the contest. Kendall Cathcart found a gap, but her shot on goal hit the top post, taking a bounce and finding Kinsely Hazelwood who was in the right spot at the right time, with the ball bouncing off Hazelwood’s stomach and into the goal.
Less than a minute later, the Savages were on the attack, and LeBlond’s Carly Woods missed a kick, which set up Haylee Hoffman for a one-on-one match-up with Golden Eagle goalie Maddie Sego. Hoffman used the far left corner to sneak the ball into the net, and the game was tied at one with just 10 minutes passed.
Two minutes later, LeBlond with a free kick, and the ball bounced past a Savage defender, landing at the feet of Allie Welter, who used a low kick that snuck under the right leg of the Savannah defender, pushing the lead 2-1 in LeBlond’s favor.
Four minutes after the Welter goal, LeBlond still felt a scoring frenzy. Cathcart was by herself without defenders on her side, leaving room on the left side of the field for a shot on goal. Her cross field shot traveled its entirety in the air, and landed perfectly to propel LeBlond to a 3-1 lead.
As the first half was winding down, Cathcart maneuvered through two Savage defenders to see an open field ahead. She slowly placed her shot in front of the goal, pulling a Savannah defender from her spot to try and stop the shot. As the defender broke, Cathcart took off, eventually passing across body to Hazelwood who would sneak it in for a 4-1 lead heading into halftime.
The second half was more or the same for LeBlond, eight minutes into the new period and the ball was placed beautifully ahead, and Katie Sego beat the Savannah defender in a foot race, resulting in the goalie coming forward. Once the goalie bit, Sego passed it cross body to Hazelwood who connected with the easier goal of the night.
LeBlond would score two more goals in the second half. The Golden Eagles begin district play on May 14 against Cameron.
