On a chilly Saturday morning, the Quince Orchard girls' soccer team opened up the 2010 playoff campaign with a first round win over visiting South Hagerstown, 5-0.
Shannon Dwyer, in her second game back from a 5-week injury, opened up the scoring in the 9th minute. Timing her run through the back line, Dwyer receive a ball from fellow senior Sami Slonim, calmly advanced toward goal, and slotted the ball to the left corner. After several good opportunities, the Cougars added to the tally in the 27th minute. Following South Hagerstown's one shot of the game, a save by Gabby Paolini, and a resulting corner kick, Kelly Whiteis sent a long clearance over midfield just beyond a waiting Jessica Konecke. Konecke outpaced her defender and finished with a solid left footed shot into the right corner. QO went into the half up 2-0.
In the second half, QO cleaned up their game a bit and enjoyed more long stretches of possession. The Cougars made the possession count in the 60th minute, when Whiteis delivered a ball into the middle of the box to a waiting Maddie Crow. Crow took one touch in the air and with composure, knocked the ball into the net for her first goal of her QO career (congrats MADDIE!). QO added to the tally in the 64th minute, when Allie Solomon delivered one of her many excellent balls into the box. Mary McMeekin jumped high to head the ball just over the advancing SH goalkeeper. The Cougars closed out the scoring in the 65th minute. On her 4th corner kick of the game, Morgan Dorset sent her typical dangerous ball into the middle of the box. Dwyer made an excellent run at goal, jumping in front of the GK, just unable to reach the ball. However, in the confusion of Dwyer's run, the GK was unable to collect the ball and knocked it into her own net.
The Cougars move on the 3A West Quarterfinals. They will host Clarksburg on Tuesday, Nov. 2, at 4 PM. During division play on Sept. 24, QO defeated Clarksburg 2-1 in overtime, after being under 2 minutes from losing the game in regulation. This sets up what should be a well-played and hard-fought rematch.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
More photos!
The players look like pros in some of these shots.
Watkins Mill
Wootton
Seneca Valley
Enjoy!
Watkins Mill
Wootton
Seneca Valley
Enjoy!
Playoff Draw is Out
QO has earned the 4th seed in the Maryland 3A West Region. They will open up playoffs by hosting South Hagerstown in a first round match Saturday, October 30, at 10 am. The link to the complete 3A bracket is below.
http://www.mpssaa.org/assets/fallsports/girlssoccer/3A%20GSOC%2010.pdf
http://www.mpssaa.org/assets/fallsports/girlssoccer/3A%20GSOC%2010.pdf
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Cougars pull upset with help from an unlikely source
Quince Orchard knocks off previously unbeaten Damascus 3-1
by Joey Sabet Special to The Gazette
Coming into Monday's game against Quince Orchard, the Damascus girls soccer team won its first eight games of the season by a combined margin of 47-2.
However, without perhaps its biggest impact player in Shannon Dwyer due to injury, the Cougars didn't panic despite an early goal from Damascus and rallied for two second half goals, one from a freshman, for the 3-1 upset.
Quince Orchard (5-4 overall, 4-0 Montgomery 3A) isn't used to being the underdog, but after graduating a solid senior class and despite coming in with a deceptive 4-4 record, it was no secret who the favorite was on this night.
"We've been really concentrating on mental toughness because we have a young, inexperienced team," said QO head coach Peg Keiller. "The kids just pulled through tonight."
Just after an early chance went awry for Damascus (8-1, 4-1 3A), in the second minute Erin Gaughan sent in her second dangerous cross in as many minutes, only this time Mary Hunkeler was able to reach it and guide it past Gabby Paolini for the early 1-0 lead.
Keeping up the pressure early, the Hornets had several chances to add to its lead, the best coming in the 11th minute when Meggy Kreysa made a sensation run and got a solid strike on net, but Paolini was just able to swat it away for a spectacular save.
"I think we've gotten better each game, and we really played well tonight," said Paolini.
Late in the first half QO began to sustain some pressure in the final third, breaking through after a Damascus turnover and Lauren Holdsworth made a great pass to fellow sophomore Kelly Whiteis who rocketed it near-post upper 90 in the 35th minute to tie the game.
A young squad regardless, QO got its game winner from a freshman who plays "maybe 10-15 minutes a game" according to Keiller.
In the 58th minute, a beautiful long ball was guided on target by Jess Konecke; after the initial save by Allison Gardner, Vida Branco nailed the uncontested opportunistic tap-in goal to give the Cougars the lead.
"I just remembered 120 percent in the box, and just put my foot out there," Branco said.
Freshman Danielle Fernandez nearly tied it in the 64th minute on a perfectly-placed free kick that went over the wall and over Paolini's head, but just kissed the crossbar.
The ball was loose in the box for what seemed like an eternity, but Paolini made another great diving stop on Kat Leiby's point-blank strike on what would be the last great chance for the Hornets on the night.
Konecke scored on a play similar to the Branco goal in the 70th minute, with Mary McMeekin on the initial shot, and Damascus was unable to create any chances to threaten the two-goal deficit.
"I think they out-hustled us and definitely wanted it more," said Damascus head coach Katie Roberts. "We weren't doing things that made us successful in the past...This is definitely an obstacle we're going to overcome."
by Joey Sabet Special to The Gazette
Coming into Monday's game against Quince Orchard, the Damascus girls soccer team won its first eight games of the season by a combined margin of 47-2.
However, without perhaps its biggest impact player in Shannon Dwyer due to injury, the Cougars didn't panic despite an early goal from Damascus and rallied for two second half goals, one from a freshman, for the 3-1 upset.
Quince Orchard (5-4 overall, 4-0 Montgomery 3A) isn't used to being the underdog, but after graduating a solid senior class and despite coming in with a deceptive 4-4 record, it was no secret who the favorite was on this night.
"We've been really concentrating on mental toughness because we have a young, inexperienced team," said QO head coach Peg Keiller. "The kids just pulled through tonight."
Just after an early chance went awry for Damascus (8-1, 4-1 3A), in the second minute Erin Gaughan sent in her second dangerous cross in as many minutes, only this time Mary Hunkeler was able to reach it and guide it past Gabby Paolini for the early 1-0 lead.
Keeping up the pressure early, the Hornets had several chances to add to its lead, the best coming in the 11th minute when Meggy Kreysa made a sensation run and got a solid strike on net, but Paolini was just able to swat it away for a spectacular save.
"I think we've gotten better each game, and we really played well tonight," said Paolini.
Late in the first half QO began to sustain some pressure in the final third, breaking through after a Damascus turnover and Lauren Holdsworth made a great pass to fellow sophomore Kelly Whiteis who rocketed it near-post upper 90 in the 35th minute to tie the game.
A young squad regardless, QO got its game winner from a freshman who plays "maybe 10-15 minutes a game" according to Keiller.
In the 58th minute, a beautiful long ball was guided on target by Jess Konecke; after the initial save by Allison Gardner, Vida Branco nailed the uncontested opportunistic tap-in goal to give the Cougars the lead.
"I just remembered 120 percent in the box, and just put my foot out there," Branco said.
Freshman Danielle Fernandez nearly tied it in the 64th minute on a perfectly-placed free kick that went over the wall and over Paolini's head, but just kissed the crossbar.
The ball was loose in the box for what seemed like an eternity, but Paolini made another great diving stop on Kat Leiby's point-blank strike on what would be the last great chance for the Hornets on the night.
Konecke scored on a play similar to the Branco goal in the 70th minute, with Mary McMeekin on the initial shot, and Damascus was unable to create any chances to threaten the two-goal deficit.
"I think they out-hustled us and definitely wanted it more," said Damascus head coach Katie Roberts. "We weren't doing things that made us successful in the past...This is definitely an obstacle we're going to overcome."
Friday, October 8, 2010
QO Topples WM, Stays in the Hunt for Division
On a chilly Wednesday evening in Montgomery Village, the Cougars extended their division record to 3-0 with a 2-0 win over Watkins Mill. Freshman midfielder Mary McMeekin notched the first two goals of her QO career. Both assists came from sophomore Isabelle Latour, who had moved up to the front line to get things moving. Senior Sami Slonim tried her hand at yet another position, filling in nicely in the center midfield. Centerbacks Morgan Dorset and Kelly Whiteis, flanked by combinations of Kayla Hamedi, Chandler Holdsworth, Madeline Korol, and Grace Toohey, helped lead the Cougars to their second straight shut-out. Junior GK Kelsey O'Connor saw her first action of year, keeping all WM shots out of the net. The game was also a chance for junior forward Allie Solomon to see her first action since spraining her ankle, and she lent a spark to the offense with her displays of skill and speed.
The Cougars are in action again on Monday, October 11th at Damascus, who is 10-0, 4-0 in the division.
The Cougars are in action again on Monday, October 11th at Damascus, who is 10-0, 4-0 in the division.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Cougars Finish Week on High Note
After a disappointing 5-1 loss on Tuesday at B-CC (goal by Kelly Whiteis, assist Morgan Dorset), the QO girls' varsity soccer team rebounded the next evening to drop Poolesville, 2-0.
Brushing aside fatigue, the Cougars battled a physical, hard-working Falcon side in Poolesville Wednesday night in the rain. After a scoreless first half, QO opened up the scoring early in the second half with a penalty kick, awarded after Kelly Whiteis was pushed aside attempting to receive a cross. Isabelle Latour stepped up to convert the ensuing penalty kick, but her hard-struck strike found the hands of the Poolesville GK. Acting quickly, Latour finished the rebound to put the Cougars ahead 1-0. The score stayed that way for much of the second half, until senior forward-at-the-time Sami Slonim received a long clearance pass from Latour, outraced the chasing back line, and placed a long shot over the reach of the PHS GK. The win is the first shutout for GK Gabby Paolini and the team, and leaves the Cougars at 3-4 on the season, 2-0 in the division.
Brushing aside fatigue, the Cougars battled a physical, hard-working Falcon side in Poolesville Wednesday night in the rain. After a scoreless first half, QO opened up the scoring early in the second half with a penalty kick, awarded after Kelly Whiteis was pushed aside attempting to receive a cross. Isabelle Latour stepped up to convert the ensuing penalty kick, but her hard-struck strike found the hands of the Poolesville GK. Acting quickly, Latour finished the rebound to put the Cougars ahead 1-0. The score stayed that way for much of the second half, until senior forward-at-the-time Sami Slonim received a long clearance pass from Latour, outraced the chasing back line, and placed a long shot over the reach of the PHS GK. The win is the first shutout for GK Gabby Paolini and the team, and leaves the Cougars at 3-4 on the season, 2-0 in the division.
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