After a largely dominant regular season, Daviess County enters the 3rd Region girls’ soccer tournament as title favorites, while defending champion Owensboro Catholic is hoping to make a deep run as they recover from injuries.
The Lady Panthers — who are hosting the tournament — won’t play until Tuesday’s 7:30 p.m. semifinal, where they’ll face the winner of Monday’s 7:30 p.m. game between Muhlenberg County and Grayson County.
The Lady Aces play in the opening game at 5:30 p.m. Monday against Meade County, with the winner advancing to Tuesday’s 5:30 p.m. contest against Ohio County.
A big key to success this year for Daviess County (18-3-0, 9th District champion) was the versatility all over the field, including a handful of players who can score at any time.
“We have several that are capable of scoring on any given night,” said head coach David Sandifer. “Teams can’t really look at stopping one particular goal scorer or one spot on the field. Our kids are very flexible. They work very hard to become good soccer players, not just positional players.”
The Lady Panthers’ three losses this year came to West Jessamine (Ky.), Father Ryan (Tenn.) and Evansville Memorial (Ind.) — each of which is among the top teams in their respective states.
Of the region-low 26 goals allowed by DC, 13 came in those three contests. Sandifer said while the Lady Panther offense has shined this year, the strong defensive effort has been just as important.
“Our defense has played pretty well,” he said. “Our goal every season is to average giving up a goal or less. We figure if we can do that we’ll have a chance to be in every game.”
Now, as they look to win their second region title in the last three years, DC is hoping to stay in the right state of mind and execute the way they have all season.
“We’ve played well the last few games and had some good practices,” Sandifer said. “Staying focused is always a priority. At this point in the season teams aren’t going to change much physically, so it basically comes down to the mental preparation and how well you can focus on a game on a given night.”
For the Lady Aces (9-8-1, 9th District runner-up), a title defense looked to be in major jeopardy after a few key players went down with injuries. Lily Moore and Ashton Logsdon — the two leading scorers — both missed the 9th District tournament championship but are expected to play this week.
“We’re still going to keep a close eye on them and not expect them to do 110 percent,” said head coach Lindsey Overby. “We definitely benefit from having them back. After Thursday it was looking really meek, but I think we’re going to be OK going into region.”
Overby said her players never lost confidence, and they aren’t ready for the season to end.
“The girls are pumped and ready to go,” she said. “They’ve kept a positive attitude considering the circumstances. They’re confident, and we’re laying it all on the table because we’ve got nothing to lose.”
With their offense still limited, Overby said the Lady Aces will have to really focus on limiting their opponents’ chances.
“The key to advancing is to maintain possession and control the game,” she said. “They’ve got to be quick to the ball and quick to make a decision with the ball. We’ll have to be defensive-minded as much as possible and then capitalize on opportunities when we have them.”
Catholic beat Meade County (12-5-2, 11th District champion) during the regular season, and it was one of only two region losses for the Lady Waves. Ohio County (13-6-0, 10th District champion) topped the Lady Aces 5-4 early in the year.
Muhlenberg County (11-11-1, 10th District runner-up) and Grayson County (4-13, 11th District runner-up) both went 3-3 in region action.
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2019 soccer coverage is presented by Worth Insurance Group.
