Starting off the first round of North Coast Section Division II soccer playoffs in style, the Lady Cougars defeated BSAL foe St. Joseph Notre Dame at Cougar Field, 4-1.
The third-seeded Cougars offense for the evening was established through the feet of senior midfielder Maddie Kirkby, named Bay Shore Athletic League Offensive Most Valuable Player. With her left foot, the MVP hit the top right shelf from near the sideline with 17 minutes left in the first half to draw first blood.
“After so many unsuccessful free kicks, I was juiced to finally score one, especially with my left foot! Even though it was the first goal of the game, it was the other three goals that secured the game for us,” Kirkby said of the goal.
The Cougars were dealing with issues all evening, including injuries to freshman Hadley Road and sophomore striker Mallory Wolfe and questionable foul calls from the referees. Despite the adversity, which culminated with a yellow card to junior midfielder Clara Macleod, the Cougars were able to tack on three more goals to total four.
Senior Mari Pastor, MacLeod and Wolfe tallied scores for the Cougars.
By the time the Pilots scored late in the second half, the match was out of reach.
“What’s most important is that we possess, communicate, and take shots so we can continue to do well in NCS. We have been eliminated from NCS by Alhambra for two years, and for once we aim to eliminate them,” Kirkby added.
The Cougars play next against Alhambra High on Saturday at noon at Cougar Field. They look to avenge two straight NCS home losses to the Bulldogs, who are the six seed.
