And in a
battle of closely matched teams, Xavier Prep emerged triumphant with a 1-0
victory over visiting Chandler Hamilton at Petznick Field on Tuesday night
(Jan. 9).
Xavier,
playing its first home match of the new year, raised its overall record to 9-2,
while Hamilton dropped to 10-5-1.
Xavier coach
Barb Chura and assistant Rafael Rios knew Hamilton would be a formidable
opponent. The Huskies appear to be similar to Xavier in some ways.
Hamilton was
the aggressor early in the match, often beating the Gators to the ball and
sending it out of trouble.
The Gators
got the break they would need with 15:51 left in the first half when they scored
a goal by sophomore Brynn Lebel after junior Kyla Ferry redirected the
trajectory of the ball near the front of the goal for the assist.
Xavier’s
defensive pace picked up after that, particularly in the second half, and made
the goal stand up.
“They (Hamilton)
had some chances to tie it, but we were able to keep them from scoring,’’ Chura
said. “In the second half, we were able to put more pressure on them higher up
the field.’’
The coach
said senior goalkeeper Kinsey Ehmann had a fantastic game, making several key
saves.
Another
effort of note was by freshman midfielder Ololade Adebayo, who spent most of
the match shadowing Olivia Knab, one of Hamilton’s top players. Adebayo is a
fine all-around athlete who uses quickness and strength to her advantage.
Xavier next
plays on Friday (Jan. 12) with a 4 p.m. match against Phoenix Pinnacle at
Petznick Field. Pinnacle features one of the state’s top goalkeepers in Jalen
Tompkins. Pinnacle is 10-2.
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