GIRLS SOCCER: Cougars’ surge ousts Chargers

May 30--The Courtland girls soccer team made some changes to its offense this week with the hopes of kickstarting an attack that it felt wasn't operating at its full potential.

The Cougars unveiled a more aggressive approach Thursday in the Conference 22 championship game and came away with a convincing

4-0 win over rival Chancellor.

Courtland wasn't eager to share all the secrets of its new formation, but the intent of the changes was clear--the Cougars want to flood the offensive zone with its array of weapons.

"We just had the urge to go out there and kill the ball all day," Cougars sophomore Amia Canada said.

The plan worked to near perfection against the Chargers, who had gone 12 straight games without a loss. Four different players scored goals for the Cougars--Kayla Locklear, Miyah Wallace, Marybeth McBroom and Paige Robertson.

Newly crowned conference player of the year Sydney Wallace had two assists. McBroom and Shelby Russell also had helpers for Courtland, which out-shot Chancellor, 16-2.

"The girls have had a difficult time offensively lately, and just over the last couple of games they started to change it around," Cougars coach Dennis Berry said. "Chancellor is a test. They're a solid team. If we could come out here and put some goals up against Chancellor, we're headed in the right direction."

Both teams advance to play Monday at 6 p.m. in the 4A North Region playoffs. Courtland (15-0-1) hosts Conference 21 runner-up Heritage, while Chancellor (10-4-3) travels to Conference 21 champion Dominion.

"There are no more easy games," Chancellor coach Jay Meyer said. "Courtland is a great team, and if anything, this will prepare us for Monday."

The Cougars were easily motivated for their rematch with the Chargers, who handed their rivals their only blemish this season when they tied them 1-1 at Courtland back on May 9.

"We just went in there saying that's unacceptable this time," Canada said. "We just wanted it so bad."

The Cougars, who beat the Chargers, 7-1, in their first meeting this season but couldn't seem to generate much offense in the second matchup, were on the offensive from the opening whistle in the rubber match.

"It really wasn't a whole lot different from the last game, other than the scoreboard," Berry said. "We finished more of our shots this time."

Locklear looped a shot over the head of Chancellor's goalkeeper for a 1-0 lead in the 14th minute, and Wallace tapped a shot in from close range for a 2-0 advantage 10 minutes later.

A 2-0 lead is money in the bank for the Cougars, who have yielded five goals all season and never more than one in a single game, but they didn't let up.

The second half saw several offensive chances for Courtland. Robertson upped the lead to 3-0 in the 55th minute, and McBroom added an insurance goal as time wound down.

"I feel like offensively we came together more, and we played off each other and really connected," McBroom said.

The offensive breakout was a welcome sign for the Cougars, who weren't working with the same efficiency in practice Wednesday. They got it right when it counted, though.

"Everybody was confused in practice, but tonight, I don't even know what happened," Robertson said. "It just perfectly fell into place."

Nathan Warters: 540/374-5442

[email protected]

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