NEWBURGH —
Washington girls soccer head coach Lauren Hannan knew her team needed to come out quickly and be on the attack, and that’s just what she got.
The Hatchets (10-6-2) defeated Evansville Central (9-7-2), 3-1, to advance to Saturday’s sectional championship game behind two goals from senior Ashlee Hayes.
From the outset, the Lady Hatchets were very aggressive and it paid dividends. In the 11th minute of play, Hayes realized she was unguarded and attempted a shot from 40 yards out that was just out of reach of the outstretched arms of Bears’ goalie Tessa Phillips putting Washington up 1-0.
Thirteen minutes later, Hayes added to the early one-goal lead with another deep shot attempt, this time from 35 yards, giving Washington a comfortable two-goal lead.
Hannan said those shot attempts weren’t out of the ordinary for the senior midfielder, she was happy her team was finally able to capitalize on them.
“Those are things that she’s always had inside her,” Hannan said. “We have tried so hard this season to get her to put some away. She has had all the opportunities, she’s just been very unlucky. Tonight was just her night.”
In the 32nd minute of play, junior forward Lupe Perez scored Washington’s third goal of the night on a difficult shot from the baseline with help from the Evansville Central defense.
“That is one of the trickiest shots,” Hannan said. “That is very hard shot to make, and it deflected off the defender. For her to even take that and cross it in and work that hard to get down to the corner was just fantastic. She played a great game.”
The defense, which has been a strong suit of Washington all season, was vital again Thursday evening. The Washington defense virtually kept Central’s offense out of the attacking third most of the night. Bears’ senior midfielder Randi Dukes connected on a shot from 35 feet out past Washington goalie Aly Hunsinger to cut the lead to 3-1, but they could get no closer.
“We didn’t want any balls to get bye us,” Hannan said. “They played so hard and they didn’t want anyone to score on them. That was motivation for them to knock down anyone that came their way.”
Washington will face the winner of the second game Thursday evening between Evansville North and Castle. While they haven’t faced either team this season, Hannan has emphasized to her team the importance of staying mentally tough as they head into Saturday’s sectional championship.
Washington has rattled off a record of 9-2-1 in their last 12 contests since a 1-4 start, something Hannan said goes directly to the heart and mental toughness of her team.
“At the beginning, it was tough trying to play with each other,” Hannan said. “Mentally staying tough and knowing if I miss a shot I still have six or seven more. You have to just keep working. That was one of the things that we really had to work on and that comes along with heart. The team has gotten closer, the chemistry has gotten better, so going into Saturday they are ready.”
Local News
Lady Hatchets win at sectional
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