KNOXVILLE – Spending its Labor Day Weekend at the Bearden Invitational the Greeneville soccer team could not break through picket line Oak Ridge had in front of the net on Friday night while one quick strike from the Lady Wildcats seized the means of production and handed the Lady Devils a 1-0 loss.
“I feel like we didn’t show up in the first half. I was proud of the effort in the second half,” Greeneville coach Jerry Graham said. “We played a shape we haven’t played much, and they were able to combine really well. We just have to finish. We left goals on the field today. We have to put the thing into the back of the net.”
The ball stayed at the feet of the Lady Devils for the majority of the first 40 minutes, but in the first minute of the second half the Lady Wildcats changed the game on a change of possession.
After taking the ball from Greeneville Oak Ridge moved the other way quickly on the counter attack. Nina Vasquez charged up the middle and saw Josi Mokszycki cutting into the box through the Lady Devils’ reeling defense. Mokszycki charged at the left post and sent a low shot past keeper Callie Broyles.
“We had the advantage coming down the field, and we were trying to push numbers up. Then we lost the ball so fast and they transitioned faster then we did,” Graham said. “They had more numbers than we could cover. The ones who were back there did the best they could, but they just could not slow down that attack.”
The goal scoring shot was Oak Ridge’s first shot of the night because Greeneville dominated possession in the first half.
Throughout the first half Harper Neas, Elaina Philbeck Julieann Raby, Julia Woolsey and Maggie Moore all did a good job of cutting off the Lady Wildcats when they tried to go the attack. Greeneville’s midfield put pressure on Oak Ridge, but the Lady Devils never got the last touch right.
“They had a really good center back and their keeper was really quality, one of the best in the state. We knew we weren’t going to beat the keeper on outside shots,” Graham said. “We needed that combination play inside, but we just weren’t getting that. Most of our runs were straight down the middle. We had possession, but we didn’t get those diagonal crossing runs that we needed.”
In the 13th minute Greeneville had a real chance when Kinsley Spradlen got ahead of the defense for the first time and sent a cross to Peyton Vaught in the box, but the shot was off the mark.
Greeneville tried to score on a pair of free kicks, but neither challenged the keeper.
In the 35th minute the Lady Devils thought they had the breakthrough when Vaught sent a pass ahead Kammerdiener who dribbled toward the frame on a mission. Just as she was shooting Oak Ridge’s Regan Keller caught up and deflected the ball away from the net.
Two corner kicks followed in quick succession, but nothing came from either.
Just before halftime Moore beautifully crossed a ball to Elsie Rogers but the shot from the top of the 18-yard box was deflected by the defense.
In the second half Greeneville got more good looks, but the result stayed the same.
In the 55th minute Kammerdiener put the pressure on the Lady Wildcats and as they were chasing she looked to Vaught breaking toward the goal. The pass was just beyond Vaught’s reach and rolled innocently out of bounds.
Not long after Greeneville was awarded a free kick from the left side just beyond the box. Raby took the direct kick while the defense was setting up and Spradlen tapped her pass in for what looked like the equalizer.
Instead the referee waived the goal off, claiming he had stopped play and had not restarted it yet.
In the 72nd minute a handball at 18 yards gave Angelyn Diaz a free kick, but Oak Ridge’s Marleigh Fraizer saved it.
Greeneville tried desperately to create scoring chances late and got off three shots in the final two minutes, but nothing found the netting.
The Lady Devils will be back in action on Sunday at Bearden against Heritage.
