Sept. 6th: Lady Pioneer Soccer Emerges Victorious in Home Opener

BY: JILLIAN MILLER

SEPTEMBER 16, 2022

Tuesday, September 6th served as a big day for Boonville soccer players and fans alike. The first portion of the season was full of away games, and it was finally time for the Lady Pioneers to show off their skills on their own turf (or grass, if you will). 

Tuesday night’s matchup between the Vikings from North Posey High School and our Lady Pioneers was sure to be a good one. Going into the game, the Pioneers record was 0-3, including a close loss to Pike Central in a shootoff. North Posey was 1-2 going into the game, with a demanding win over Tell City 4-1 under their belt. The Pioneers were ready to get the show on the road and leave the Vikings in their dust. 

North Posey got the ball at the beginning of the game, and could barely make it past midfield. The trio of Ashtyn Mayes, Emma Gresham, and Jackie Mosqueda made life for the Vikings’ a nightmare, stealing ball after ball and being aggressive. 8 minutes into the game, the hard work at midfield paid off. The Pioneers got control of the ball, and a pass from Maya Cobb to Jackie Mosqueda resulted in a goal for the Pioneers! The team celebrated, and then it was time to put their game faces back on and prepare to strike once again.

Not surprisingly, the defense continued to hold strong. A small slip up led to the North Posey offense getting close to the goal, but goalkeeper Addy Blackford lept into action and deflected a shot with 27 minutes left in the first half. 

Defense continued to improve as the night went on, and North Posey never got close to the goal for the remainder of the half. Strong efforts by the defenders did not go unnoticed, and eventually led to a wide open goal for freshman Ava Kelley with 12 minutes left in the half. Kelley’s speed and agility allowed her to drive around defenders and strike from the right side for an easy goal. 

The Pioneers continued to stay strong until the end of the half, when they got to rest up before resuming the very physical battle against the Vikings. 

The second half resembled the first: North Posey was held behind midfield for most of the half, except for a slight miscommunication that led to a wide open shot for a Viking, but Addy Blackford pulled off an incredible diving save to prevent the goal. Other than that, there was simply an incomparable effort displayed by the Pioneers that night, and the effort resulted in a shutout victory over North Posey by a score of 2-0. 

The teamwork from the Pioneers created multiple opportunities that led to goals, and efforts from people like Lacie Simpson and Jasmyne Sinnott on defense kept the Vikings off the board. The ladies have every right to be proud of themselves, and are destined to have a good remainder of the season.