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Punxsy's effort not enough against talented Clearfield |
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Written by Dan Walk
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Thursday, 08 October 2009 |
Clearfield senior Katlyn Reddinger (8) tries to kick the ball past Punxsy's Alissa Vite Wednesday night at Jack LaMarca Memorial Stadium. (Photo by Dan Walk/The Punxsutawney Spirit)
PUNXSUTAWNEY — Clearfield controlled the ball for much of the game, and the Punxsy girls' soccer team never worked its way into an offensive rhythm during a 4-0 loss Wednesday at Jack LaMarca Memorial Stadium.
It didn't take long at all for the Lady Bisons to score, as Punxsy quickly allowed the first goal of the game just 64 seconds into the contest. Based on just the 1-0 deficit, the Lady Chucks were able to stay in the game for the next 20 minutes, but offensively, they rarely had any opportunities.
Punxsy finished with just one shot on goal. It came off the foot of Sierra Milton during the first half.
Otherwise, the Lady Chucks never had a crisp shot toward Clearfield senior goalkeeper Brandie Centi, even if some opportunities were presented. Centi retrived a handful of bouncing balls in the goal box, but only one was a powerful shot.
"We didn't have a lot of shots on net, but the opportunities were there. I think tonight was a case of us not thinking we were going to get them (shot opportunities)," Punxsy head coach Tom Robicheau said. "When you get opportunities like that, you have to put them into the net.
"You can't limit teams like this. You have to cover everything," he said. "You have work harder than they do."
Punxsy worked hard — especially after its lackluster effort Monday when it lost at home to Kane, 3-2 — but with the caliber of the Lady Bisons, the Lady Chucks couldn't do enough to get on the scoreboard.
Not helping matters was the fact that once Punxsy pushed the ball past midfield, four defenders stayed on the Lady Chucks' side of the field. Robicheau said that due to the Punxsy defenders' inexperience, the Lady Chucks couldn't overcommit on offense, or else they would have gotten burned on defense.
That left forwards Lauren McGarvey and Sierra Milton with little help and mismatches once they tried to attack Clearfield's defense.
"With us, the more you commit downfield, the less you have (on defense). We don't have a defensive line that's been together for four or five years," Robicheau said. "You only can ask them to do so much. The more years they're together, the easier that is."
After Clearfield's first goal, it found the back of the net about 24 minutes later when Nichole Powers scored with 15:06 left in the first half.
A direct kick on the right side of the field bounced off Punxsy's three-girl wall before Powers pounced on the ball and pushed it past Punxsy junior goalkeeper Timi Shiock.
The 30-minute span from the last 15 minutes of the first half and initial 15 minutes of the second half included zero goals for Clearfield before it scored twice during a 2 1/2-minute span.
Shiock overpursed a bouncing ball that included a handful of girls in the box. Once she realized she couldn't reach the ball, Shiock scrambled back toward the goal only to see the ball soar over her head and into the net.
The goal over Shiock's head came with 26:29 left in the game, while Briana Bowman pushed a ball past a diving Shiock on a breakaway with 24:06 left. Though it was a loss, Robicheau was pleased with his team's effort and intensity.
"I was happy with the intensity tonight. I thought they worked hard, which was better than last game," he said. "Not that I like a loss, but the effort was there. We had some mistakes, but I can fix those mistakes. The effort is a hard thing to fix."
Punxsy will try to shake off a two-game losing streak when it visits Curwensville for a 4 p.m. start today.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 09 October 2009 )
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