by Rafael Marquez
The Bastrop Bears opened up the first half of play by mounting a solid series of attacks on the Lobo goal. Lacey Ellison of Bastrop missed an open shot to the Lobo goal post after the Lobo goalie came out too far, leaving the goal wide open. Ellison’s shot missed over the top.
Both teams were breaking out fast attacks, but neither team was able to score early. The final score had Bastrop ahead 4-2.
The first score of the game came on the feet of Lehman Lobo Madison Blok, who shot the ball into the net from about 30 yards out on a free kick.
During the first half of the match up, the Bears could not get their offense together. They had many shots on the Lobo goal, but they were disorganized in their attacks and all of their shots were easily handled by the Lobo goalie.
The Lady Lobos dominated the first half of play with methodical, well-formed attacks and disciplined play. The Lady Bears seemed to scramble to keep up during the first half.
Less than a minute into the second half, Lady Lobos midfielder Max Soto was pulled out of the game with an injury. This would prove to be the unraveling of the Lobos during the second half.
Lehman girls soccer head coach Nauri Garcia later said about the loss of Soto from midfield, “We struggled to find answers and recover from that.” Soto is a key leader on the field for the Lady Lobos. Having two out of the three captains out of the game due to injuries only exacerbated things for the Lobos.
During the halftime break, Bears head coach Leslie Otts told her team to “calm down, find feet and find the goal.” The Bears found their feet during the second half.
The first Bear goal was scored by Meghan Morris after breaking away from her Lehman defenders. Within the next 15 minutes of play, the Bears would score two more times. Bears player Melissa Perry scored next, followed by Sarah Martin.
The Lobos fielded five freshmen during the second half and could not get coordinated.
Lehman did answer the three consecutive Bear goals with a solid score by Mariah Tamayo, also from a free kick which brought the score to 3-2 with 6:13 left in the game. The Bears answered the Lobos with another score at the feet of Haley Merdel with 1:33 left in the game.
Next for the Lobos, are the Giddings Buffaloes in Giddings.
