Late first half goal enough for Lafayette to edge New Kent

New Kent's Jennifer Critz (13) and Peyton Lilley (5) sandwiches Lafayette's Madison Adcock as part of a defensive tactic.

Robb Johnson photo

Less than 24 hours after their encounter with Poquoson, New Kent’s Lady Trojans had to bounce back quickly for a Saturday noon matchup against Lafayette’s Lady Rams. And while defense dominated the game, it was a critical play that gave the Lady Rams the one and only score on the day to clinch the victory.

A horrendous shot attempt by the Lady Trojans resulted in a fast break and short distance goal by Lafayette’s Carly Orlowinski with seven seconds remaining in the first half that provided the guest with a 1-0 win.

New Kent’s defense held steady thanks to a combination of stepping into passing lanes and good goaltending. Those shifts kept up until the aforementioned goal by the guests. Meanwhile in the second half, the Lady Rams prevented the hosts from finding any momentum, preventing any scoring opportunities and dropping the hosts to 5-8.

Lady Trojan assistant coach Maria Bates spoke about the great effort on defense but desired more aggression on the offense end.

“We have to hit the balls harder and push them down the field more, especially after that critical play,” she said. “Our defense played great today and it’s the best game we played in the last month and that includes some of our wins.”

“We have to continue to play and play all 60 minutes,” Bates continued. “That is something we have to continue to work on and we will.”