Soccer team plays well in losses
Published 10:40 am Thursday, April 28, 2016
Davie’s varsity soccer team didn’t break through with a major upset last week, but it had the guts to push Reagan and West Forsyth for the full 80 minutes.
The War Eagles nearly pulled off their first-ever win over visiting Reagan on April 18, leading by two goals in the second half before falling short 4-3.
The offensive attack held up its end of the deal. Faith Bokeno and Jaci Grachen provided a 2-0 lead, and it was 2-1 at the half. The versatile Madison Riddle gave Davie a 3-1 advantage. How impressive was that score? Davie had never scored more than two goals against Reagan (5-9 overall, 4-3 Central Piedmont Conference), getting outscored 58-8 during all other meetings.
The Raiders scored three unanswered goals in the closing stages to dodge a bullet from Davie. It spoiled a whale of a game by goalie Mary Tellup.
“We were ahead until the last 10 minutes,” coach Kerstin Steinour said. “I am proud of the way the girls played. We did really well. I want to give praise to Tellup. She had some amazing saves.”
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To put Davie’s effort in a 2-0 road loss to West Forsyth on April 21 in perspective, consider that West is 49-0 in the CPC since 2012. Consider that Davie was smashed 7-0 by West on March 21. Consider that this was Davie’s closest game with West in five years (the War Eagles lost 3-2 to the Titans in 2011).
Davie held its own against a team that improved to 11-2-4 overall and 7-0 in the league. It was 2-0 at halftime and stayed that way until the end.
“We played really well in the second half,” Steinour said as Davie dropped to 6-9, 2-7. “We didn’t have many (shots), but we controlled the ball better and had more runs.”
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Davie’s junior varsity could not match up with Reagan and West, losing both by 4-0 scores. Coach Cody Cook’s club still has a chance at a winning season, with records of 6-5-2 and 4-5.