Free Kicks: G-A girls surprise Maidens in 2-1 upset
Over the last two seasons, despite Greencastle-Antrim having good years, Waynesboro's girls soccer team was able to find success against the Blue Devils in hard-fought, defensive games.
The Maidens won three games of 1-0 and also produced a 1-1 tie.
And in the rivals' first meeting this year last week, 'Boro's Morgan French scored about a minute into the game. That 1-0 deficit could have been tough for Greencastle to swallow.
But the Blue Devils had a trick up their sleeves in the name of Jenay Faulkner. Known for her prodigious basketball talent and as a soccer goalkeeper, Faulkner played forward in this game and ended up providing assists on both of G-A's goals, as it rallied for a 2-1 victory.
"We called it the Jenay Experiment," Blue Devil coach Greg Cole said. "She is tall, and consequently won a tremendous amount of balls out of the air for us. She has a great left and right foot and caused problems for the 'Boro back line.
"I think it worked. She had a hand in each goal and created multiple shooting opportunities for herself and others. I think it caught them off-guard some."
Faulkner assisted on a goal by Sarah Douglas not far into the second half. With about 12 minutes left, G-A earned a free kick from about 40 yards out. Heidi Schanzenbacher struck a kick to the back post and Faulkner headed it across the face of the goal to Madi Sherrill, who tapped in the game-winner.
Cole said, "The defensive ball pressure from both teams was tremendous. I thought our defense did a wonderful job of playing positionally disciplined, and we kept the 'Boro playmakers in check. Michaela Kendall and Sarah Douglas won possession in the middle and distributed nicely to the mids and backs. It was, using the catch phrase, 'a total team effort.'"
ON THE RISE: The Southern Fulton boys soccer team is chasing its first-ever District 5 playoff berth, and had a big win last Wednesday over Chestnut Ridge, 4-2. It was the first time SF had ever beaten the Lions. Cam McCray led the way with two goals and an assist.
Indian coach Scott Varner said, "We both play a similar possession type of soccer, so it was kind of a tug of war in the (scoreless) first half. The switched to a more kick-and-run style in the second half and we defended that. It helped create more opportunities at our offensive end. Colby Whiteside did a phenomenal job in goal (6 saves), defending some well-placed shots by Ridge.
"This is a quality win the program needed."
Southern Fulton (4-3) has two tough games this week, hosting upstart Everett on Wednesday before traveling to Fannett-Metal on Friday.
HANGING ON: The Chambersburg boys beat State College in a key game Saturday, but it had to survive a big-time push by the Little Lions in the latter stages. It only seemed like State College set up for a free kick every minute or so.
Overheard was Trojan goalkeeper Jacob Dougal yelling to his troops, "Quit fouling!"
Fortunately, Dougal and the defense were up to the task, fending off numerous dangerous balls sent in by the Lions, including a tip save with about a minute left by Dougal on a ball that deflected off a teammates' head.
Trojan coach Corey Grove said, "When we beat (Cumberland Valley, on Tuesday), one reason we were successful was because we didn't foul. But we did today and you can't keep doing that."
QUICK TAKES: The Trojan boys could get some reinforcements this week: centerback Jacob Stouffer could return from an injury, and forward Rafael Bonilla, who scored 13 goals and had eight assists last year, could see his first action ... The Chambersburg girls held CV to a 1-0 score on Tuesday - in the last seven years, the Eagles have outscored the Trojans a glaring 91-2.
Shippensburg's girls team had a leaky defense early in the season, surrendering 33 goals in its first five games. But the Lady Hounds had shored that up, giving up only seven in the next seven games before Monday's 7-1 loss to Palmyra ... In its first six games, McConnellsburg's girls scored a total of seven goals; they put in 10 Monday against Johnstown Christian.