PORTLAND – Scarborough made the most of its scoring opportunities Thursday to become the only unbeaten girls’ soccer team in Western Class A.
Midfielders Erica Meader and Cortney Hughes scored during the first 30 minutes to lead the Red Storm to a 2-0 victory against previously unbeaten Cheverus in an SMAA game at Boulos Stadium.
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“I think the number of (scoring) chances were relatively similar,” Cheverus Coach Dan LaVallee said. “They finished theirs and we didn’t finish ours.”
The Stags held an 8-6 edge in shots.
“We don’t play great for 80 minutes, but we have two or three chances and we finished them,” Scarborough Coach Mike Farley said. “That’s really the difference in the game.”
Meader opened the scoring in the 21st minute when she curled a 25-yard shot from the left of the goal over goalie Mikayla Mayberry’s head and inside the far post.
Less than 10 minutes later, Hughes, standing directly in front of the goal, lifted a shot from 15 yards out to complete the scoring.
Hughes’ goal came less than two minutes after Cheverus’ Hannah Noonan, a sophomore striker, sent a shot wide of an open net after breaking in on the left side.
“When you give up a break and they don’t score, and then you come right down and score, those are the goals that really change games and demoralize teams,” Farley said. “It was huge.”
But the Stags (5-1-1) didn’t give up. They held a 5-2 edge in shots in the second half.
Noonan sent a shot from the right side over the crossbar in the 46th minute.
Two minutes later, goalie Jill Deering, who made eight saves as the Red Storm (6-0) posted their fifth shutout of the season, knocked down Leeann Morrison’s shot from point-blank range.
“She made the save and our defense jumped right on the ball and made sure it didn’t come right back at her,” Farley said.
The Scarborough defense, spearheaded by Emily Tolman, did a great job of beating Cheverus’ speedy forwards to the long balls from the back.
“When you let those balls bounce, they have very athletic forwards who will flick that ball up the field, and you’re caught running toward your own goal,” Farley said. “That’s a bad situation.
“We did a good job of staying back and really powering through the ball, keeping it going the way we’re going instead of balls bouncing behind us.”
Despite the loss, LaVallee saw some positives.
“We’ve got a ridiculously young team and the more they’re in these really pressure games, the better off they’re going to be at the end,” he said. “They were very nervous the first 10 minutes, then once they got loose I think it was a pretty even game.”
Staff Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 791-6424 or at:
pbetit@pressherald.com
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