RC Girls Go 2-1 In Soccer Wildcats Celebrate Senior Night With Shutout Win
The Rockbridge County High School girls soccer team celebrated its senior night with a 4-0 win over Rocktown in a Valley District match in Lexington on Tuesday of last week.
Lucy Boller-Pinkham scored all four goals as the Wildcats cruised to the victory. Later in the week, RC fell 8-0 in a non-district match at Staunton before defeating Broadway 5-2, wrapping up the regular season with a 9-6 overall record and a 9-5 mark in district play.
Friday’s win clinched a home Region 3C tournament game for the Wildcats, which is slated for this evening.
RC dominated long stretches of last Tuesday’s match, outshooting the Raptors (1-13-2 overall, 1-10-2 district) 38-6 and holding a 6-2 advantage in corner kicks. Kiele Neil made 20 saves in goal for Rocktown.
But the ’Cats wouldn’t break through until the 31st minute, when Boller-Pinkham collected the ball off of a defensive giveaway and buried a 33-yard strike past the stranded Neil. It was the start of a big game for the sophomore midfielder, who stole the show on senior night.
“Lucy brings that soccer IQ and that skill ability that comes from daily working with the ball by herself,” RC head coach Danny Wheeler said. “She’s a quiet leader, but she sets a very high standard. You saw that tonight.”
The sophomore completed her hat trick with a pair of rapid-fire goals early in the second half. In the 53rd minute, Madelyn Jones made a great run up the left side and into the 18-yard box to set the table for Boller-Pinkham, whose shot deflected in off the crossbar and the back on Neil.
Roughly one minute later, Boller-Pinkham delivered a terrific strike from outside the area to make it 3-0. She would add a fourth on a breakaway chance with under four minutes remaining.
Caden Marshall needed to make just two saves to keep the clean sheet for the Wildcats. Rocktown also missed the target on a penalty kick in the 51st minute, which was awarded for an RC handball inside the box.
Prior to the match, the Wildcats honored their six seniors: Jones, Emily Boling, Brooke Eichelberger, Lydia Kendall, Sofia Smith and Madeline Swisher.
On a different night, Jones might have added one or more to her impressive career tally – she surpassed the 50-goal mark for her career earlier this season – but the forward was denied by multiple great saves from Neil, and she also hit the crossbar on a breakaway in the 65th minute.
But overall, those six seniors have helped elevate RC girls soccer back to a level that the Wildcats haven’t seen in several years.
“Most of the seniors have played together at least 10 years,” Wheeler said. “They’ve been great leaders this year. … Rockbridge girls soccer has been the beneficiary of those individuals.”
RC 5, Broadway 2
The Wildcats quickly erased the memories of a tough Wednesday night in Staunton with a 5-2 road victory over Broadway on Friday.
Madelyn Jones scored twice and Boller-Pinkham notched one goal – the 30th of her varsity career – along with three assists for RC. Smith and Emily Jones also delivered goals as the ’Cats sewed up a home playoff game.
“It was great to see the team play as a unit,” Wheeler said. “We also had some great individual performances.”
One of those came from Marshall, the Wildcats’ sophomore goalkeeper, who made 10 saves to keep the Gobblers (8-7-2, 7-61) at bay. Marshall had a “great night in the net,” Wheeler said.
For updated details about tonight’s match and more information about the regional tournament, please visit thenews- gazette.com.
RC SENIOR forward Madelyn Jones hustles to the ball while a Rocktown player tries to keep up during the Wildcats’ 4-0 win. (Stephanie Mikels Blevins photo)
Wildcat sophomore midfielder Emily Jones launches the ball down the field while Rocktown’s Arpana Sapkota (6) and Abdi Molina Cid (8) play defense. (Stephanie Mikels Blevins photo)
