NTL GIRLS' SOCCER: WYALUSING EDGES TOWANDA IN DEFENSIVE BATTLE (2024-09-04)
BY CHRIS MANNINGNorthern Tier Sports ReportWYALUSING — Wyalusing girls’ soccer played their sixth straight shutout, using a first half penalty kick out of Chloe Bennett to edge Towanda 1-0 in NTL action Wednesday.
“It’s really exciting,” Wyalusing’s Alysha Botts said about their strong start to the season. “We were all confident we’re going to have a great season. It’s really good that we’re able to start it off really strong.”
It was a defensive grind as both teams struggled to get inside the other, though Wyalusing did out shoot Towanda 11-6 in the contest. That was fine with the Rams, whose experienced back line held Towanda’s Anna Dunn in check most of the afternoon.
“I guess we like these 1-0 games, that’s two in a row,” said Wyalusing coach Gary Haley. “But the girls played really hard. We knew Towanda, coming in, was going to play us hard here. We were able to get that goal, and our defense played outstanding, particularly Alysha Botts. She was marking up Anna, and Anna’s a super player, so she had a tough task and Alysha really did an outstanding job.”
Botts shadowed Dunn all over the pitch, trying to keep her from getting to her right foot.
“She’s a really, really good player,” remarked Botts. “It was fun chasing her around, trying to stay with her. I liked the challenge. It’s pretty scary, you just can’t stab at it, because she can kick it from really far, and she’s really good at doing that.”
Dunn was able to get couple a shots off from distance, but nothing that keeper Sophia Alvarez couldn’t handle. Helping Botts was senior center back AnnaMary Slocum, who didn’t stray far from Dunn, either.
“Those two and our entire defense has played strong all year, so it’s a really nice win for the girls,” Haley said.
Towanda’s best chance at an equalizer was late in the second half when they got a corner kick in front of the Wyalusing goal. The ball bounced around inside the box before being cleared by the Wyalusing defense.
Offensively it was slog for the Rams as Towanda’s own defense did a good job smothering any attempt in the box, forcing them to take long shots from outside the 18.
“We’re still trying to figure out that combination of girls up front, so we’ll continue to work on it,” remarked Haley.
Alvarez finished with nine saves to get the clean sheet, while Towanda’s Mya Maynard had seven. Towanda had an 8-1 edge in corner kicks.
For Towanda it's a sign they're moving in the right direction. It's the closest game they've played this year as they keep looking to improve.
The Black Knights, now 0-4, hit the road again as they travel to NEB (1-1-1) for a Saturday morning contest. Wyalusing (5-0-1) will get a big test on Saturday, as well, hosting NTL defending champs Troy (6-1), also had 10 a.m.
“We’re looking for a good game,” Haley said. “I hope our girls are excited about it. It’s on our field, and nobody else likes that, so hopefully we come to play.”
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PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING
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