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Madonna rallies for full game to shut out Big Red

Matthew Peaslee ON THE PITCH — Madonna’s Shannon Westfall keeps the ball away from Steubenville’s Kandisi Anyabwile in Wednesday’s match.

WEIRTON — Soccer games are 80 minutes long.

The Madonna girls’ soccer team came ready to play and played the full 80 minutes. Big Red did not.

The Blue Dons scored three goals in the first half, and that was the offense they would need as Madonna blanked Big Red, 3-0, Wednesday evening at the J.C. Williams Soccer Complex.

“We played a lot better today,” Madonna (2-1) head coach Bob Kolanko said. “We were rested. Saturday’s game was the second game of a back-to-back.

“The girls came and attacked the ball. They made a lot of good passes. I am very proud of the way they played. We worked on some things this week.”

The girls from Hancock County outshot the girls from Jefferson County, 18-3, in the first half. The hosts took 12 shots on goal in the first 40 minutes, while the visitors took just one.

The victors’ offensive pressure forced Big Red into taking eight goal kicks in the first half, while the girls in white took just two.

The Blue Dons also took two corner kicks before halftime, while Big Red did not take any.

“We didn’t show up,” Big Red (1-1) head coach Jared Robinson said. “I don’t know what happened. The coaching staff needs to do a better job of snapping them in and getting them ready to go.

“We knew what they had coming in. We knew they were talented. We knew they moved the ball. We did not show up. They were able to get some open shots, and they took advantage of them.”

Three different players scored goals for Madonna, and three different players had assists.

Individually, senior Gianna Antinone netted a goal and an assist to lead the way, while Haley Timko and MaKayla Virden each delivered a goal. Also, Kali Krynicki and Kasey Canei each contributed an assist.

“I am proud of the girls,” Kolanko said. “Big Red played a very-physical game. Sometimes when a team plays physical it causes you to lose your way, but our girls didn’t. They played their game. They did not respond. They kept their heads. They played a strong game.”

Madonna was unable to connect passes together in its 1-0 loss Saturday afternoon against East Fairmont. The Blue Dons did a much better job of connecting passes in the win against Big Red.

“Absolutely,” Kolanko said. “We were able to make connecting passes, and that created opportunities for us. We were able to break out of our own end. We controlled the middle of the field. We would pass the ball in the middle of the field, and then we would send a ball through to our attackers. Controlling the ball in the middle of the field and sending it up to our forwards led to our first two goals.”

Canei, Madonna’s goalie, made four saves.

Big Red goalie Gillian Haught was under siege for most of the game, and she tallied 18 saves.

All told, Madonna outshot Big Red, 30-8, in the game, and the Blue Dons took 18 shots on goal to four for the girls in the red and black. Big Red took 18 goal kicks in the game, while Madonna took four.

“We did not show up in the first half,” Robinson said, “We didn’t go to the ball. They brought the attack to us. We are inexperienced. We will learn that you can’t do that.

“We talked to them at halftime, and we were more focused in the second half. It was more of a game. We played the way we are capable of playing. If we played the first half like we did the second half, the result would have been totally different.”

Big Red had a golden opportunity to score first when Emma Cotter had an open shot inside the box early on in the game, but Canei was able to make the save to keep the game scoreless.

Madonna got on the scoreboard 19 minutes into the first half when Antinone scored off of a feed from Krynicki to make the score 1-0.

The Blue Dons struck again two minutes later.

This time, Timko scored off of an assist by Antinone to increase Madonna’s advantage to 2-0.

The winners capped the scoring 34 minutes into the first half when Virden gained control of a punt from Canei, and broke through the Big Red defense before knocking a shot into the net to put the Blue Dons out in front, 3-0.

“We have a game tomorrow, so I tried to rest as many people as I could,” Kolanko said. “In the second half, our three-non starters played the majority of the time. I wanted to give our players as much rest as possible, but the girls we brought in off of the bench did very well. I think it was a little bit of fatigue and tiredness on our part in the second half, and Big Red was able to get some opportunities.”

Big Red has the bigger roster of the two teams, and Robinson used his bench quite a bit throughout the game.

“When you see Jared pull in with a full bus, and we only have 14 players, that can be intimidating,” Kolanko said. “He used a lot of his bench today. He used it more than I thought he would, and that is a credit to him to get those other girls into the game.

“When you play with 14 girls, fatigue is going to come in to play, but I think that will only help our girls get stronger and get better. I think it will help us in the long run. By the team you get to the heart of the schedule and in the postseason, you are only playing 13 or 14 girls anyway. Our girls will have gotten a lot of playing time by then, and they will be use to playing 80 minutes.”

Haught made some key saves to keep Big Red in the game, and she was the vocal leader of the team on the field.

“She did what she was supposed to do,” Robinson said. “She has the voice. We don’t have to worry about her losing her voice. She trains her voice. She definitely did her part.”

Madonna is scheduled to play at 6 p.m. today at Weir inside Jimmy Carey Stadium in the annual City Championship Game.

“We have a very-big game tomorrow,” Kolanko said. “Last year, we tied them, and then we lost to them in the sectionals. It would be nice to come back and get a win this year.

“We really haven’t done anything on turf yet, except for one scrimmage. We are going to have to adjust to that.”

The Blue Dons won the city championship two years ago, and Madonna kept possession of the trophy after last year’s tie.

“It would be nice to win it out right,” Kolanko said about the trophy. “If we win, then it would truly be ours. We are not focused on that. It is a beautiful trophy, and we looked to keep possession of it.”

Big Red’s next game is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday at Ridgewood.

“We are proud of our girls,” Robinson said. “They did not give up. Some of the teams in the past would have. It was 3-0 in the first half, and it was 0-0 in the second half. It was a tale of two halves.”

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