MONTGOMERY, Ala. - In a youth-heavy Faulkner (1-0) squad, the newcomers announced their arrival, scoring three second half goals in a 3-0 win over Freed-Hardeman (0-0-1) Saturday at Billy D. Hilyer Stadium.
"The fact that they were able to do it with three different goal scorers and three different types of goals was really, really big," Head Coach
Colby Phillips said. "We have a deep bench this year and it showed. The girls that did come off the bench today showed that they can do that and were very comfortable with that. That was probably the biggest thing. The girls can succeed in different places under pressure and take the next step so I was very proud of them."
Faulkner started seven freshmen or sophomores and battled through a scoreless first half despite creating more opportunities in the midday heat.
Phillips said the midpoint changes were basic. "At halftime the talk was very simple, I encouraged them that you always want to have fun and I felt like we were."
In the 52nd minute,
Yury Santaclara, one of the 11 Lady Eagles who made their Faulkner varsity debuts, delivered a curling corner to the back post where she found an unmarked
Gabrielle Pfaff. The sophomore buried the free header to score the first goal of the game and the first of her Faulkner career to take a 1-0 lead.
The lead looked like it would vanish rapidly just moments later as two minutes later, Alexia Lorenzo-Pereira raced free for a one-on-one with Faulkner's goalkeeper,
Taylor Waters. Waters, a sophomore making her varsity debut, closed down on the free Lady Lion and stopped the crucial one-on-one chance for the biggest test in her five-save shutout.
The lead was extended in the 60th minute when a spoiled pass from Freed-Hardeman's goalkeeper was intercepted by
Cassie Jackson who linked up with
Leeanne Alsobrook who fired a shot from outside the box into the open net. Alsobrook, a freshman, doubled the lead and put Faulkner in firm control of the match.
The Lady Eagles held their ground through some late tests from Freed-Hardeman to make the game interesting and allowed for a moment of brilliance from
Brooke Parker to take a 3-0 lead and seal the final score. In the 80th minute, Pfaff pressed high and forced another bad pass from Freed-Hardeman that went right to the feet of Parker–who made her college debut with her twin sister Jordan in the 32nd minute– with space in front of her on the left wing. Parker took a shot from 35 yards out and floated the Freed-Hardeman goalkeeper with a curling shot into the back of the net.
The win gave Faulkner its ninth consecutive win over Freed-Hardeman and seventh shutout over the Lady Lions in 10 meetings.
Faulkner welcomes No. 21 Truett-McConnell Saturday Aug. 30 for a 1 p.m. kickoff.
