Looking to start off the 2022 campaign on a strong note, the Lady Panthers soccer team opened the year up with a 5-0 district road win over Owensboro on Wednesday.
After sitting out a year because of injury, sophomore Lily Hoagland was able to return to the pitch and showed out. It started with a goal in the 14th minute of play that put Daviess County up 1-0, but then lightning caused the game to go into a day-long delay.
The following day when the game picked up at 5:30, the two teams began to trade counters back and forth. It was the Lady Panthers who came through once again, getting a goal to make it 2-0 from freshman Molly Floyd on a redirect after a tackle was made by the Lady Devils in the 30th minute.
It remained that way until shortly after halftime, where a ball got loose in the box on a Daviess County throw in. Senior defender Brooke Schwartz eventually controlled it, before putting it in to give the Lady Panthers a 3-0 lead in the 42nd minute.
It took them until the 74th minute to finally break through once again, where Hoagland got her second goal on a quick counter.
“It felt good [to be back out there],” Hoagland said. “I think I still think I need some more time to recover… “I hustled and my teammates gave me good balls to finish.”
Three minutes later junior Jessie Harwood followed up a missed shot, sinking it into the left side net to put a bow on a 5-0 season-opening win. Owensboro Head Coach Michael Lovett said that he was pleased with his team’s efforts, but that their lack of endurance came back to bite them.
“We got outplayed, especially in the second half because of our fitness,” Lovett said. “We lack fitness where they excel and that was the biggest difference… I think the last two goals we gave away just because we were fatigued and they weren’t.”
The Lady Panthers controlled the ball well throughout the night, getting multiple players involved to score goals. Lovett praised them for their offensive prowess, stating that they kept the Lady Devils on their toes.
“They moved the ball well,” Lovett said. “Side-to-side, they’re very good at timing their runs. In the first half, we had a really good offsides trap. Second half, they figured it out. That’s what you expect experienced teams and coaches to do and that’s how they were able to get more offense in the second half.”
Daviess County’s constant effort on both ends kept Owensboro off the board, giving the Lady Panthers a solid start going into the DC Classic this weekend. Daviess County will hit the field on Friday night against Boyle County at 7:30 p.m., while the Lady Devils will hit the road for a Saturday afternoon matchup against Paducah Tilghman at 2 p.m.
