Graham High School’s girl's soccer team fell to Northwood, 10-1, in conference play on March 26 at Graham High School. While the score was lopsided, the determination and teamwork in communication has significantly improved for Graham as the team entered the game 1-4.
Starting at 6 p.m., this was a Mid-Carolina 1A/2A Conference clash, which meant a lot for both teams. Graham entered 1-3 in conference after defeating Cummings 2-0 on March 19. Northwood entered 4-5 overall and 3-1 in conference play after losing to Seaforth 6-0 on March 24.
Northwood scored first and tallied nine goals by halftime. The Chargers had 24 shots on goal in just the first half alone. A few minutes into the game, Graham held its composure in defense and was not scored on — but that was only temporary because an aggressive charge by Northwood gave them several opportunities to sneak past the defense. However a few attempts were either blocked or saved by Graham’s goalie Angelica Flores Sandoval. Despite the challenges, after a few minutes the Chargers found their rhythm, scoring several goals within minutes of quick assists and follow-ups.
Northwood's offense was relentless in the first half. Senior Sarah Anne Murrell netted four goals, and was instrumental in gaining the lead en route to victory.
Graham only tallied two shots on goal in the first half, yet this is promising for team chemistry, which was head coach Everett McCook's focus this week.
“The girls did very well at talking with each other,” McCook said after the game. “We've been working on playing our positions, supporting each other, and talking. I think the girls did a really good job of that tonight.”
The second half was no different for Northwood as it completed the game with 32 shots on goal to Graham's three. Northwood's defensive line for most of the game was effective enough to diminish any offense Graham tried to assemble. There were glimpses of potential offense, but Graham could not get over the backline.
Northwood’s head coach, Ascary Arias said there were some things he felt they could have done better when it came to preventing offside calls. Although the team scored at will, they had seven offsides called in the first half alone.
"Just because you can score goals doesn't mean you can forget about the fact that there is a line that you can't cross," Arias said. "Seven in one half is way too many. There were just careless mistakes."
Graham's goalie had to save a lot because many shots were on her net, and although the defense struggled to not give overload options to Northwood, it held up to several shots against. If anything, they improved from their last few games regardless of the ten-goal outcome.
For Graham, forward Berkley Faucette said communication and teamwork are the two goals the team needs to work on going forward.
"Always communicate,” Faucette said. “We have to play as a team and support each other.”
As a coach, McCook said he feels comfortable that his team has a lot to build on over the season.
"We've had a lot of things to work on, but we've seen growth in communication and teamwork," he said.
The victory against Graham was a solid bounce back for the Chargers after falling to Seaforth in such a lopsided score. Coach Arias said even with the strong showing against the Red Devils, there are still adjustments to be made going into the next match.
For Graham, the score may not show it, but any adjustments on teamwork and communication will only help them move forward as they look to bounce back from this tough loss. The Red Devils have several more conference games coming up, and with teamwork, they can find success in their next few outings.
The win improves Northwood to 5-5 overall and 4-1 in conference. Meanwhile, Graham falls to 1-5 overall and 1-4 in conference. The Red Devils will reevaluate and take lessons learned into their next match.