Contact: Jenni Brockman
Telephone: 804-443-3357 (w); 804-443-2703 (h)
Fax: 804-443-6781
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
St. Margaret's Unable to Shake St. Anne's-Belfied, Remains Undefeated in Conference
Still unbeaten in League of Independent Schools (L.I.S.) Conference play, St. Margaret's varsity soccer team battled through seventy minutes of scoreless soccer to tie a stubborn St. Anne's-Belfield (STAB) team last Thursday, January 28 in Charlottesville.
SMS (5 - 1 - 1 overall; 5 - 0 - 1 L.I.S.) unleashed its powerful offense from the start, but STAB countered with a defensive attack of its own. The two teams marked each other player-for-player at every position; neither team could get anything going offensively.
The SMS 1998-99 Winning Varsity Soccer Squad.
STAB, coming off six consecutive weeks without a game, showed up primed and ready to play. The team had two games cancelled earlier in January due to weather conditions; a few weeks prior no games were scheduled due to semester exams and Christmas break. Six weeks off, if anything, proved to be what STAB needed, as the group had time to build up its confidence and psyche heading into Thursday's match.
The first half was a balanced contest between the two teams. Neither team dominated, but each side enjoyed ample scoring opportunities. The Scotties expended plenty of effort, however, had no goals to show for it at halftime. "In the first half, we hurt ourselves by holding onto the ball too long and not looking to pass to others," said senior forward Lauren Steinenger.
Heading into the second half, SMS forced dozens of excellent scoring chances but came up short on every try. Sophomore forward Sara Shelton, of Virginia Beach, had to be carried off the field late in the half with an ankle sprain. Shelton's injury seemed to exacerbate SMS' frustration in the game's closing minutes. Freshman forward Anne Bruce, of Farmville, raced to fetch loose balls on the sidelines, hoping to salvage a few extra seconds of game time to allow extra scoring opportunities for her teammates. As the final whistle blew, both teams let out a collective sigh of frustration as neither side was able to capitalize on its scoring opportunities. The game ended a scoreless tie.
Notable individual performances for SMS included, Anne Bruce, who played forward and halfback. Bruce galloped past STAB defenders throughout the contest, consistently beating her opponents to the ball. Statesboro, GA native Carol Combs controlled the middle at center halfback, opening up many scoring drives for her teammates with hustle and quick steps to the ball. Sophomore sweeper Britt Faulkner, of Whitestone, took pressure off SMS' defense with her domination of the middle, playing behind Combs. Senior goalie Cynthia Walker also came up big, as she hurried many shot attempts and booted kicks to SMS forwards downfield.
Head Coach Karen McCann liked what she saw of her team's play in Charlottesville. "This was a big league game for us and we wanted to remain undefeated in order to keep the top seed for the playoffs," said McCann. "They had outstanding individual play from one or two girls who really stepped it up. We couldn't seem to get any lucky breaks offensively, but both teams played physical, hard-nosed soccer for seventy minutes…it was a beautiful game to watch."
