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Grafton's Lindsay Wicher and Courtland's Kristina Miller get tangled up in a battle for the ball yesterday. Courtland's Kara Blosser and Grafton's Rachel Hambrecht race to control the ball during yesterday's Region I girls soccer quarterfinal. Courtland won, 3-0. |
BY ADAM HIMMELSBACH
A few weeks ago, the Courtland girls soccer team played musical cleats.
The main purpose of the shift was to send the Cougars' sensational midfielder, Lauren McCoy, to steady the defense at sweeper.
That allowed Courtland's other star, Kara Blosser, to fall back from striker and fill McCoy's vacated spot.
The final result of this shuffle was a bit less noticeable, but just as important.
Sophomore Olivia Mabry was sent to striker, where the Cougars have had one dynamic scorer after another.
Entering the Region I tournament, Mabry had three goals this season.
In last night's regional quarterfinal, she scored two, leading the Cougars to a 3-0 victory over Grafton.
"I feel like I work harder when I'm up front," Mabry said. "And there's more pressure on me to score."
Blosser scored the Cougars' final goal.
Courtland will play host to Tabb in a Region I semifinal tomorrow at 6:30 p.m., with the winner earning a berth in the Group AA state tournament.
The Cougars reached the state title game in 2005 and 2007, and they finished second both times.
On the first try, McCoy was an unknowing freshman striker, all skinny legs and unmistakable speed.
On the second try, she was still at striker, but she had a better understanding of how difficult it is to make it that far.
Now she is a senior and now she is a sweeper, and now she realizes this is her last chance.
"I'm a lot more vocal now, telling people to mark up and stuff," said McCoy, who has scored 102 goals in her four-year career. "I definitely think we can make it back to states, and hopefully this time, we'll win."
Yesterday, McCoy steadied the final line of a defense that allowed few dangerous scoring chances. Cougars back Julia Miller stifled Grafton's captain, Lindsay Wicher.
And at the other end of the field, Mabry took care of the rest.
"Olivia was fantastic," Courtland coach Dennis Berry said. "She made some nice runs and was calm at the top."
Adam Himmelsbach: 540/374-5442
Email: ahimmelsbach@freelancestar.com
| REGION I BOYS QUARTERTERFINALS
GRAFTON 1 GRAFTON 0 |
