Waynflete reacts after securing a 1-0 win against Traip Academy on Tuesday. Ben McCanna/Staff Photographer
Four minutes into her team’s game Tuesday afternoon, Waynflete girls’ soccer co-coach Carrie Earls looked on in shock after her team finally got a dose of good fortune.
The up-and-coming Flyers, who have had their share of bad luck in recent seasons, caught a break when Lucy Hart’s shot took a fortuitous bounce into the goal. Behind a strong defensive effort, Waynflete made it stand up in a 1-0 win over Traip Academy at Fore River Fields.
The Flyers won their fifth game in a row and improved to 7-4 this season.
“We definitely were due some good luck,” said Earls, who coaches Waynflete along with George Sherry. “We tell the girls to put balls on frame and you never know what will happen and we wound up on the right side of that today. I’m the most competitive person in the world, so to win five games in a row is great.”
Waynflete’s Lucy Hart maintains possession under pressure from Traip Academy’s Emily Sweeney. Ben McCanna/Staff Photographer
In the first meeting between the teams, Traip won 3-0 at home. On Tuesday, the Flyers took the lead in the fourth minute when Hart fired a long, low shot that somehow got past Traip goalkeeper Olivia O’Leary (four saves).
“I had an open shot and I took it and it was just a lucky bounce,” Hart said. “You can’t score unless you shoot it. We’ve had good energy lately and hopefully, we keep getting good results.”
The Rangers had their chances before halftime, but Waynflete goalkeeper Jesse Connors (eight saves) stopped shots from Keira Alessi, Nora Gilbert and Molly Sawtelle , who also lofted a shot that landed atop the netting.
After the Flyers failed to add to their lead, the spent the majority of the second half trying to hold on. They did thanks to timely defensive plays from Lolie Millspaugh, Emily Girard and Hart, as well as four more saves by Connors. One of those saves was a deflected shot off the foot of Noelle Denholm with just over a minute remaining.
Traip Academy’s Molly Sawtelle passes under pressure from Waynflete’s Lucy Hart. Ben McCanna/Staff Photographer
“It was getting a little scary at the end,” said Millspaugh. “I was just booting the ball out. At halftime, I hoped we’d get another in, but we couldn’t.”
“Team camaraderie is at an all-time high,” Earls added. “We’re living in the moment. We’re looking forward to getting some redemption against other teams that have beaten us.”
Traip Academy Coach Michael Jackson called it a frustrating day for his team.
“It’s disappointing, but give credit to (Waynflete),” said Jackson. “They played with a lot of energy. They beat us to a lot of 50-50 balls. They were very good defensively on stopping our attack. They knew who our most dangerous players are and keyed on them. We didn’t adjust well to how they were doubling or triple teaming some of our players. We had some chances too. We all know we can do better.”
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