SOLON– Following a rough 18 minutes, the Lady Spartans varsity soccer team plucked the Central Lee Hawks, 8-0, in a Class 1A Region 8 quarterfinal to advance, setting up a semifinal meeting with the 11-5 Mid-Prairie Golden Hawks at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 1, at Spartan Stadium.
Gabby Knipper stabbed the ball into the goal with roughly 22:54 remaining in the first half, delivering the Lady Spartans a 1-0 lead, off the fingertips of the Hawks’ goalie.
With 9:45 remaining in the first half, Morgan Link fluffed the net for a score, 2-0, on an assist from Sydney Rissman after several more Solon assaults on the Central Lee goal and a sole defense of their own.
A little more than two minutes later, with 7:13 remaining, Link dissected the Hawks’ defense, weaving her way and delivering the ball to Knipper for the final score of the half. The Lady Spartans led, 3-0.
A little more than seven minutes into the second half, Stella Mesch hammered a shot into the goal advancing the Lady Spartans’ lead to 4-0.
Mesch delivered her second goal of the game for a 5-0 lead, with 35:53 aglow atop the scoreboard. Mesch ended the night with four shots, three on goal.
Solon clearly put Central Lee to task, leading an all-out assault in the first 16 minutes of the second half, depleting any wind the Hawks had hoped to replete their wings.
Link strolled through defenders, booting it into the net, with 8:57 remaining in the game, for the 6-0 Lady Spartan lead.
Solon’s offense worked the ball in, to Link, for another goal at the 5:55 mark following field position courtesy of a Central Lee foul.
Another Link goal, with 3:47 remaining in the game, sealed the Central Lee Hawks’ fate, relegated to 4-8-1 for the season, and advancing the Lady Spartans (13-5) to the Class 1A Region 8 semifinal on Tuesday, June 1, against Mid-Prairie (11-5), at Spartan Stadium, starting at 6 p.m. The Lady Spartans hold a 2-0 victory over the Mid-Prairie Golden Hawks this season from Monday, April 19, in Wellman.
Link finished the evening leading the Lady Spartans’ scoring with four points and an assist, taking 10 shots, nine of which were on goal.
The Lady Spartans had the Hawks’ defense on their heels most of the game.
“Sydney Rissman and Grace Yetley both had great movement, first touch and possession in the middle,” summarized Head Coach Amanda Paulson. “The team started off slow and flat but found their momentum about halfway through the first half.”
“Defensively, we did well stepping to the ball and I didn’t feel Central Lee had any dangerous attacks,” observed Paulson. “Offensively, we were able to find our rhythm and put away some goals, especially in the second half.”
Paulson anticipated a strong offensive presence, but was hoping for a better and earlier start. “I know the girls were excited to play and be part of the attack,” she commented.
Coach Paulson was also well aware of the importance of not taking any opponents for granted.
“Mid-Prairie is not a team that should be overlooked,” Coach Paulson detailed. “We played them earlier in the season on long grass and they were aggressive and beat us to a lot of 50/50 balls. We have a good opportunity to spread them wide and attack their flanks, but we have to be careful about their direct balls and their high forward.”
Paulson assured the team grasps the importance of each game, for themselves as well as their opposition, moving forward.
“The team is feeling good and their energy and attitude is very positive,” she reported. “The understanding is that it is play or go home, so we play leaving nothing left.”

Gallery • 4 Photos

Lady Spartan Morgan Link hands the ball off to teammate Sydney Rissman, away from Central Lee’s Makayla Morrison, during Solon’s 8-0 domination of the Hawks on Wednesday, May 26, at Spartan Stadium, in regional quarterfinal play.