Thursday, Sept. 11, 2008 - by Jennifer Beekman | Staff Writer
The Quince Orchard girls soccer team couldn't get the ball in the back of the net in the first half of Wednesday's season-opener against Poolesville. But still, the Cougars trotted to the sideline at halftime up 1-0 in Gaithersburg.
Poolesville's own-goal in the 36th minute gave the Cougars the slight lead; just enough cushion for them to compose themselves. Quince Orchard scored twice in the second half to clinch a 3-0 victory.
After rain cancelled their first two contests, the defending Class 4A state champion Cougars were anxious to kick off 2008. Early-season jitters were evident in their slow start Wednesday, but they ultimately subsided.
"The first game you're always a little rusty," junior midfielder Kayla Clarke said. "I think we were a little excited at the beginning, our passes were going too far, but after a while we settled into the game. After you get a goal, you always seem to relax a little, you get more creative and goals start falling. I think this was a great way to start our season."
Last season was all about Quince Orchard getting back to the state final, where it suffered a last-minute defeat in 2006. The Cougars achieved that goal with the program's second state title, but their appetite hasn't been satiated.
"Oh, we definitely want another state title this year," Clarke said. "We know we have a target on our back and that everyone wants to beat us. But knowing everyone wants to beat us makes us want to beat them even more."
The Cougars had a few question marks coming into 2008; namely, where their scoring was going to come from after the strike force was hit by graduation. But Quince Orchard had no trouble pushing forward and creating opportunities Wednesday.
Led by Clarke, junior forward Ele Margelos, junior midfielder/forward Emily D'Italia and junior midfielder Yvonne Latour, the Cougars implemented their possession offense efficiently. They outshot Poolesville, 16-6, and finished two good chances: D'Italia and junior defender Leah Prentice found the back of the net in the second half of Wednesday's contest.
"At halftime we talked to the girls and told them, ‘If you put enough pressure on a team, things like [the own goal] are bound to happen,'" Quince Orchard coach Peg Keiller said. "That's kind of been our mantra; if you create enough chances, one is bound to go in."
Wednesday's result wasn't exactly what Poolesville had in mind for its season-opener. But things could have been a lot worse.
The Falcons actually improved on last year's 6-0 loss to Quince Orchard. And, though young, they displayed mental tenacity after the unfortunate own-goal put them in a hole.
Senior forward Megan Brown and junior forward Stephanie Boulter teamed to help Poolesville create several scoring chances of its own. But the Falcons are young and still hesitant in the final third.
"Honestly, I wasn't thinking about this game in terms of number of goals," second-year Poolesville coach Christina Mann said. "I mean, it'd be better if we'd won but I felt like this was a 0-0 game the entire time. We had opportunities. We need to be better about the final pass up top and learn to be in the right place at the right time. I think this game showed us we can play with anyone."
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