Lady Dawgs lose 1-0 heartbreaker to Ellison despite dominating action
By TJ MAXWELL
Cove Leader-Press
The Copperas Cove Lady Dawgs kept the action on the offensive side of the field for much the night with 17 shots on goal to just 10 for the Lady Eagles in their District 8-6A soccer match with playoff implications Tuesday at Bulldawg Stadium.
The Lady Dawgs kept the kept the Lady Eagles away from their goal for much of the second half until Ellison managed to threaten with a couple attempts on goal in the final five minutes of the contest before a foul call gave Ellison’s Lu Lu Moreno a free kick from about 30 yards out with 2:05 remaining. The kick sailed over the line of Cove defenders and a lurching Lamkin for the lone goal of the contest.
The win put the Lady Eagles (4-6-1, 13 points) in the driver’s seat for the fourth and final playoff spot with a one point advantage over Harker Heights (4-7, 12 points) and puts the Lady Dawgs (3-8, 9 points) in a must-win scenario with road games at Shoemaker and Harker Heights and a home game against Killeen looming.
The Lady Dawgs fought off an early surge by the Lady Eagles with three saves by goalkeeper Sophia Caro in the first 16 minutes of action.
The Lady Dawgs then finished the half with four unanswered attempts on goal by junior Angelica Key, sophomore Audrey Spicer, senior Jordan Campbell and senior Ashley Cowan. Junior Kailey Walker nearly had a goal on Cove’s first attempt on goal in the ninth minute but Ellison keeper Hayley Kelley pulled of the save.
Both teams began to pour on the attempts in the second half, exchanging attempts on goal and saves.
Ellison again came out aggressive with three attempts in the first 12 minutes of the second half but saves by Kaijah Lamkin kept it a scoreless contest.
The Lady Dawgs responded with six-consecutive attempts on goal, including a shot by Campbell that went off the fingertips of Ellison’s Kelley and two more opportunities where sophomore Mariah Ruiz and freshman Haven Stevenson were unable to convert on point-blank attempts in the 66th minute and 68th minute respectively. Ruiz’s shots sailed high and Stevenson’s attempt was a glancing shot off the side of her knee.
The Lady Dawgs beat Shoemaker and Killeen in 2-1 contests in the first round but suffered a 1-0 loss to the Lady Knights. They will likely need a sweep in round two to secure that final spot.
Ellison and Heights will knock each other off when they battle tonight at Ellison.
The Bulldawg soccer team also suffered a loss against Ellison on Tuesday in a 2-0 contest. The loss drops the Dawgs to 1-10 while Ellison (4-5-2, 14 pts) stayed in striking distance of Waco Midway (6-4-1, 19 pts) for the final playoff spot.
The Dawgs finish the season with home games against Shoemaker tonight and Harker Heights on Tuesday for senior night before ending the season on the road at Killeen.
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