Late first half goals propel Spotsylvania past New Kent

New Kent's Sara Ward blasts the ball past Spotsylvania's grimacing Aubrie Jackson in first half action.

Alan Chamberlain photo

New Kent’s defense withstood Spotsylvania’s offensive punch for most of the first half, but intermission did not arrive quickly enough for the host Lady Trojans. The Knights scored twice in the final five minutes to take command on the way to a 4-0 soccer win.

“The offense was not there,” Lady Trojan coach Steve Grech said after Tuesday night’s setback. “[Spotsylvania] took the whole middle of the field and we lost the middle.

“Soccer is a game where you’ve got to go out there and play 100 percent,” he said. “In the first half, it was zero percent. In the last 20 minutes of the second half, it was 80 percent.”

The Knights owned a 17-2 edge in first half shots (29-5 for the game), keeping Lady Trojan keeper Lauren Barney busy in goal. Most of her 22 saves on the night took place before the break.

And Barney had responded to every challenge until just under five minutes left when the Knights’ Aubrie Jackson lofted a long-range shot that hooked high over her leaping save attempt and into the net. Moments later, Barney deflected another Jackson shot, but the Knights’ Cat Petro hammered in the rebound for a 2-0 halftime lead. Jackson and Petro combined for their team’s second half goals.

New Kent’s best scoring opportunities came on a pair of Kristen Taylor direct free kicks, one in each half, but both were stopped by Knight keeper Sese Bibler. Bibler also corralled a Taylor corner kick and two shots launched by Nae White.

“In soccer, you’ve got to go in and play with heart,” said Grech, whose team fell to 0-3. “The other team went out there to win, but I’m not saying we didn’t want to win. It’s just that we slowed a little bit.”