JV Patriots speed past Cougars, 4-2

The Wootton Patriots came into Quince Orchard Stadium on Saturday and defeated the JV Cougars 4-2. The Patriots' front line anchored by No. 22 was extremely fast and really tested the Cougar defense during the first half. No. 22 scored a hat trick for the Patriots.

The game started off fast and within 4 minutes the Patriots' No. 22 dribbled down the left side and sent a blazing shot into the Cougar net. Twelve minutes later the same player pulled down a long pass in the middle and scored for a 2-0 lead. Things were looking poorly for the Cougars early.

Fortunately, for the Cougars they have a shot maker on the team as well. Maddie Crow sent a beautifully struck 20 yard direct kick over the keepers' head for a score with 18 minutes remaining in the first half. Eight minutes later Vickie Alvarado sent a nice pass to the left side of the field where Jessica Konecke was able to dribble past a defender and send a rocket past the keeper to knot the game up at 2-2.

A minute later the Patriots sent a long 30 yarder into our penalty area which Jessie Wagner was able to punch away, but unfortunately the ball bounced to a Patriots player who was able to send it in for a score. With less than 2 minutes left in the half, the Patriots' No. 22 completed her hat trick with a shot from the left side to make it 4-2 in favor of the Patriots.

"The Cougars were still pumped up and excited when I had my half time chat with the girls," said Coach Alison. "I just told the girls to keep playing aggressively and fight for all of the loose balls. If we kept up the pressure we could score some more goals and beat them." "I was concerned about the Wootton player No. 22 since she had already scored three goals in the first half," stated Coach Alison. "I assigned Debra Jones to play man-to-man defense against No. 22 and I asked Debra to prevent her from touching the ball. My hope was that we could neutralize her and allow us the opportunity to pressure their end of the field."

In the second half, Coach Alison's plan worked out just as she had wanted. Debra was able to prevent No. 22 from getting any shots on goal and the Cougars' offense went to work on the Patriots throughout the second half. The Cougars had the ball in front of the Patriots net a number of times, hit the post on one crossing opportunity and really came close to scoring. As luck would have it, the Cougars were not able to get the ball in the net for a score, but they certainly gave the Patriots a run for their money.

It was a fun game to watch and the parents were extremely proud of the way our Cougars fought back to tie the score in the first half and then put on an offensive display in the second half that just fell short. The Cougars may not have won the game, but they certainly served notice to the Patriots that we could play them tough.

Coach Alison said after the game, "I thought our girls did a commendable job against the Wootton girls. They played aggressively, never gave up and really played with a lot of heart."