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The Warsaw girls soccer team had to wait until Thursday evening to begin sectional tournament play after getting a bye in the blind draw. Facing off against Elkhart, the Lady Tigers asserted themselves from the opening whistle, scoring three goals in the first half to fuel a 5-0 victory at Goshen High School.
In what was a mostly even first five minutes of the match, the slight advantage belonged to Warsaw due to the team’s ability to put a pair of shots on goal in the early going. That’s not to say the Lady Lions weren’t able to find their own successes, they just couldn’t put together that final touch required to get a good look on net early on.
Fifteen minutes into the contest, not much had changed. The game was being primarily played in the midfield thanks to some great defending by both sides, but every once in a while, one of the two teams would put together an offensive run. Up to this point though, nothing had materialized just yet.
Warsaw’s Amy Escutia-Palacios came close to breaking the deadlock multiple times during this stretch, but whether her shot was saved or she was called offsides, the game’s opening goal eluded her.
Instead, the game’s first goal came off the boot of freshman Isabella Lara. After a long spell of possession on the Elkhart end of the field yielded multiple opportunities for the Lady Tigers, the ball made its way back towards the midfield and to the feet of Lara. Without thinking twice, she unleashed a long, high-arching shot from well outside the box. It turned out to be picture perfect, as it soared over the head of the Lady Lions’ goal keeper before diving down right into the back of the net to give Warsaw a 1-0 lead.
It only took a few minutes going by for the home team on the scoreboard to double their lead. Upon scoring the opener, the Lady Tigers continued to attack their opponent in search of another. Following a scrum for the ball in front of the net , Lylah Williman emerged with possession. After barely missing out on scoring just 10 minutes earlier, the junior would not be denied this time. She’d bury her shot to make it a 2-0 game.
Senior Regann Finch (L) of Warsaw battles for the ball with Elkhart's Maria Uribe during Thursday evening's soccer sectional at Goshen...Nieter
With less than five minutes to go in the opening 40, Williman struck again. After winning possession with a tough tackle, she passed it off to a teammate, who gave it right back to the forward, who now had plenty of space around her. Not hesitating, she took her shot and buried it in the bottom left corner of the net to give the game a 3-0 scoreline heading into the half.
Holding onto a three-goal lead as the second half got underway, the Lady Tigers seemed more willing to sit back a tad and defend the Elkhart offense. The Lady Lions were still struggling to get anything going, which allowed Warsaw to still remain on the prowl offensively themselves. Through 15 minutes of play in the second, the score remained the same and it didn’t appear as the home side’s lead was in any danger.
Now, with 15 minutes left in the game, the Lady Tigers were able to get back onto the scoreboard again. This time, it was Evie Pepper scoring an absolutely beautiful goal for her team. After winning possession and turning it up field, Pepper let her shot go from just outside the right side of the box. The attempt was perfect, bending at just the right angle to perfectly sink into the back of the goal. The insurance score made it a 4-0 game.
With less than a minute to go in the game, the Lady Tigers were able to score one last goal, this one another long shot by Maya Bodiker to give the game its final score.
Warsaw (8-5-2) will take on Northridge for the sectional championship on Saturday. The Lady Raiders clinched the Northern Lakes Conference title at the Tiger Soccer Complex in a 1-0 win last week.
