In third place in the 2nd Region as postseason nears
Monday night’s game was about more than just the final score as the Lady Colonels honored their seven seniors before the match. On the field, the team made sure to cap the celebration with a convincing 8-0 victory over Webster County, with the game ending at halftime due to the mercy rule. It was another region win, helping keep the Lady Cols firmly in the mix near the top of the standings.
There were several memorable moments for the team’s seniors. Annabelle Wilson, who recently suffered a broken arm, was given the opportunity to take the field for her senior night. Immediately after kickoff, the ball was sent out of play, so she could be substituted out of the game and receive the recognition she deserved, truly reflecting the spirit of the night.
Senior Madelyn Sutton came out of the gates fast, scoring two goals—her first two of the season—within the first six minutes of the game. Another senior, Maleah Dixon, also recorded her first goal of the year later in the match.
Adalyn Bishop, a senior goalkeeper, started the match and produced a clean sheet.
“Senior night is always a good night. A lot of kids get a chance to play. In the first 10 or 15 minutes, we had three goals from seniors so that’s huge,” said head coach Ben Dempsey.
Other goal scorers on the night included Rachel Womack, Latta Johnston, Alea Martin and Layla Gugel, who scored twice.
The Lady Cols own a 10-3-3 record on the season, including an 8-0 win over Apollo on Tuesday night. HCHS sits firmly in third place in the 2nd Region standings as they approach the postseason.
The season has not been without its challenges, though. Key injuries have plagued the Lady Cols, including Wilson’s broken arm. She has been a leader on the back line but now faces her second major injury in as many years after tearing her ACL last season.
A nagging hamstring injury has hampered McKinley Black this season, as well. Black led the team in goals last season, but has netted just six so far this season in limited playing time.
Offensive production is one area Dempsey hopes to improve before his team enters postseason play, making contributions from the rest of the team all the more important.
“We’ve struggled to score goals this year. It’s just a reality… In a pinch we need some new kids that can step in and score goals and they showed they can do that,” Dempsey said. “I think that for us the main part is just consistency. Obviously, you want to be playing your best soccer in October and we’re hoping to get back to that in the next couple of weeks and get some confidence back again.”
Gugel has stepped up in a big way. According to KHSAA at the time of this article’s writing, she leads the team with 15 goals. Johnston has added five goals and a team-high 10 assists. She is fifth in the region in assists.
“I feel like we’re developing a really good chemistry… On the offensive side, we need to be more disciplined, and we need to produce more shots,” Gugel said. “I’ve worked on getting the ball up and through more. I’m more confident, I’d say.”
The Lady Cols hope that consistent production and a healthier roster return before the region tournament which they will host at Colonel Field.
Against other top teams in 2nd Region, HCHS has fared well. They own a 3-0 victory over University Heights which is atop the standings at 11-2-0. They’ve also defeated fourth-place Caldwell County. However, they lost an early-season match, 2-1, to Madisonville, which is currently in second place.
Senior Olivia Joyce talked about her team’s confidence level, heading down the stretch.
“As of about a week ago, it’s definitely going up. We got a really good win over UHA a couple weeks ago so that was really good for our confidence,” Joyce said. “It’s just about keeping sound and healing our injuries and making sure we stay focused… Everything’s different in the postseason.”
Dempsey is looking forward to the home field advantage his team will enjoy during the region tournament and hopes it will give the Lady Cols a major boost.
“If we can get healthy, we’re a really dangerous team and I still think we’re under the radar. I think that being at home for the postseason is going to be really huge for us.”
The Lady Cols will travel to Owensboro High School for their next match on Thursday.
Watch Latta Johnston’s goal late in the first half of Monday night’s game.
