SOLON– Blustery and cool conditions following the rain at Spartan Stadium on Monday, May 3, did not deter the Lady Spartans’ soccer team from emerging victorious, 1-0, over the Williamsburg Raiders.
A sole, second-half score by sophomore Morgan Link was all Solon needed to emerge victorious. Link recorded four shots during the game including the sole shot on goal for the win.
Senior Stella Mesch took four shots, two on goal; sophomore Georgia Havlicek shot twice; freshman Gabby Knipper made two shots on goal; and junior Lauren Bevans took one shot on goal.
The Lady Spartans’ defense held the Raiders to six shots total, only two of which were on goal.
“I thought Izzy Paisley had a great game defensively and worked hard to get behind the ball,” Head Coach Amanda Paulson praised.
She added, “I would have liked to see more opportunities up top and shots on goal, but I thought we did a good job pressing during the second half.”
Coach Paulson explained the Raiders getting 10 players behind the ball posed some challenges for the Lady Spartans.
“That makes it very compact in the final third and forces us to play wide before we go to goal,” she elaborated.
The Lady Spartans faced a test with another early week second game, facing the Center Point-Urbana (CPU) Stormin’ Pointers on Tuesday, May 4.
“I did have concerns with two back-to-back games,” Paulson confessed. “I knew CPU was going to be a challenging game, and with low numbers and several injuries, we were going to have to really dig in to get another W.”