Aggressive offense leads to Lady Indian win over Blue Lions
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
It was business as usual for the Hillsboro Lady Indians Thursday night at Richards Memorial Field.
Though the game was slow in the first half, as HHS ended the first 40 minutes of play with a 3-1 advantage, they once again proved to be a team that could score when needed by putting the ball in the back of the net three times in the second half for a 6-2 South Central Ohio League win.
Hillsboro has scored 16 goals in two games, putting up a 10 spot against Miami Trace, due to the fact of the pressuring HHS offense.
HHS (2-0) has dominated the offensive side of the ball in the early part of the season, while still working on a few things in pursuit of the SCOL crown.
"Our defense was a little tighter, but sometimes we were still scrambling," HHS coach Leslie Molen said. "We've made some changes to the defense this season, and at times, we will be a little shaky for a while."
But to reach the top of the SCOL, HHS had to defeat the Lady Blue Lions, and at the start of the game, Hillsboro took control early with two goals in the first 13 minutes of the game.
Lady Indian senior Lauren Colliver scored two goals in the first half and added one in the second half for a hat trick vs. the Lady Blue Lions.
Her first goal came with 35:28 left in the first half as she drilled the ball 35 yards into the net. Colliver was assisted by freshman Taylor Davis.
At the 1:47 mark, Colliver added to her season total of goals scored with a 15-yard bullet to the back of the goal for a 3-1 Hillsboro lead. Colliver has scored five goals in two games, as she holds the Lady Indians' season record scoring mark at 20.
Colliver's final goal came in the second half with 32:10 left in the game with the assist to Lauren Grimes. The goal made the score 5-1.
HHS junior Leah Pence has also caught fire in the first two games for the Lady Indians as she netted five against the Lady Panthers Tuesday and added two more vs. Washington. For the season, Pence has seven goals.
Pence's first goal came in the first 40 minutes with 27:08 remaining with a short put back goal after the Washington keeper made a stop seconds before. Hillsboro senior Ashley Meyer assisted Pence with the goal.
In the second half, Pence headed in a goal with the assist from Davis for Hillsboro's fourth goal of the SCOL battle.
The sixth and final Lady Indian point was perhaps the longest of the season with a 45-yard skyscraper kick that bounced over the Lady Blue Lion keeper's reach, into the net by junior Gabby Sugden with 23:58 left in the game.
"Gabby got on it (Thursday)," Molen said. "The goal in the second half gave her some confidence."
Washington's goals came in each half.
The first half goal was from junior Brittany Kellis and the final Washington goal was by Adrienne Perrill, a sophomore.
"Hats off to Hillsboro," Washington coach Jon Creamer said. "We played hard, and we told the girls at the half we needed to stay aggressive. The girls stayed in the game and I thought we played well.
"A couple of their goals they (HHS) caught us out of position, but Hillsboro has several girls who can shoot the ball."
The loss drops the Lady Blue Lions to 0-2 overall, as they suffered a loss to Circleville on Tuesday.
"They (Washington) are a much improved team from a year ago," Molen said. "Our midfield is doing well, and collectively, with the assists we've had and the scoring, we are playing as a team. We are spreading the ball around, and we have no selfishness."
Hillsboro stands at 2-0 overall and in the league. They will host the Clinton-Massie Lady Falcons Tuesday at Richards Memorial Field.
BOX SCORE
WSHS 1 1 — 2
HHS 3 3 — 6
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