With a season opener against 15-time State Champion St. Johns Country Day School on Monday, Oct. 26, no one knew what to expect from the Nease girls soccer team and its new head coach, Elias Walton.
The Panthers’ 4-1 victory against St. Johns clearly signaled that the team was up to the challenge and that it will be a handful for any opponent to be able to contain this year.
The score of the game was not indicative of Nease’s domination. If not for the brilliant play of St. Johns goalkeeper Eva Lerche, the final score would have been a lot more lopsided.
Although the halftime score was 0-0, Nease had outshot St. Johns 18-3. Nevertheless, the St. Johns goalkeeper had been a brick wall stopping every shot that came at her. The dam was finally broken in the seventh minute of the second half as Ellie Larkin finished a cross from Avery Loewe and shot the ball into the left lower edge of the goal. Gemma Bellantoni then scored eight minutes later off an assist from Reese Maxwell.
A few minutes later, St. Johns tallied in the 28th minute on a free kick after a foul was called just outside the Nease box. Rhea Surage then racked up an unassisted goal for Nease in the 28th minute and Loewe finished the scoring in the 37th minute after a pass from Sydney Seizert.
Four goals from four different scorers with assists from three different players reflected the diversity of the Nease attack.
Throughout the game, Nease controlled the midfield with great play from Isla Palenik and Wakely McKennon and the defense controlled the St. Johns attack through the back four of Hadley Mahoney, Star Reed, Surage and Kylie Gilrain. With the game being well in control, Coach Walton was able to give plenty of playing time to younger players.
Post game, Walton had these comments:
“I’m extremely proud of the way our girls came out and competed. What pleased me most was the way we controlled the midfield, created scoring opportunities, and continued to trust our game plan even when their goalkeeper made some outstanding saves in the first half. While we’re excited about the result, we understand that this is only the beginning of a long season. We have plenty to work on, and our focus now shifts to preparing for Wolfson and our home opener against Providence. Our goal is to keep improving every day, stay committed to one another, and see how far this group can go. I’m proud of the start we’ve made, but I believe our best soccer is still ahead of us.”
