On a day which started with a snow dusted Roger Dusharm Soccer Field ended in a 2-0 decisive victory for the Canton Girls varsity Soccer team over the visiting Huskies from Franklin Academy. The win places the Canton with a record of 7 wins and 2 losses on the season and the Huskies move to 3-7.
It was evident from the onset that the Huskies were seeking to avenge their early season loss to the Bears as they came out strong and determined. The Bears knew very well that senior goaltender for the Huskies Madison Ansari would be a stingy net minder and that they would need to take advantage of any good look at the goal if they were to score. Coach Greg Kiah went to his bench early getting seniors Claire Craig and Emily Wentworth on the field in the forward positions. Their presence and determination up front was immediately evident when at about the fifteen minute mark a deflected ball found its way to sophomore Allison Kiah when she chipped it just over the outstretched hands of Ansari for the beautiful 25 yard goal. It is being debated whether she used a pitching wedge or 9 iron for the shot but regardless, it was an exceptionally memorable play and the Bears found themselves on the board with a 1-0 lead. Play went back and forth for the remainder of the half.
The second half resumed and picked up where it left off as a highly competitive game. Canton’s aggressive play was evident as the girls found themselves taking advantage of many 50/50 balls, but also found themselves penalized at times. Etta Coburn (So.), Sydnee Francis (So.), Allison Shorette (Jr.) and Megan LaFlair (Sr.) battled for every possession! Coach Greg Kiah commented on the teams’ defensive play. “Maddie Hoy (Jr.) probably played her best game of the season. She not only put herself in the right spot at the right time, but seemed to trap every ball which came near her using a variety of methods. Seniors Hailee Duvall and Esther Shipman along with sophomore Bryce Butterfield are just great together back there! What more can I say…..Because of them, we are always in a position to win games.” The quartet surely did anchor the defensive group and helped Canton Goaltender Bree Rogers earn the shutout victory.
The goal which sealed the win for the Bears came at about the mid-way point of the second half as Hannah Reed made a perfect pass to Emily Wentworth for her first career goal. As many know, Emily decided to play soccer when swimming was moved to the spring season. As a multi-event record holder in the pool she is certainly no stranger to success but soccer is different and she seems to be growing more confident each game. What was clearly evident after she scored the goal was that her teammates were every bit as excited for her as she was for herself. The sideline erupted with cheers, horns honked and engines roared. Coach Kiah commented, “Emily has been really working hard on her individual moves. She has an instinct to be in the right spot at the right time which may be due to her years playing basketball. I am so happy for her and all of the girls for this win. We needed this one!”
Coach Kiah also commented on the fact that their game last evening was the only girls game played in Section X. He expressed an appreciation for the toughness of his girls given the cold temperatures and their desire to play whenever, whoever and wherever they can. “Every day we are able to play is awesome. through the cold, through the COVID, we just want to play!” It is clear that he means it. The photo below is a picture of him using a sump-pump on the field a week ago….. doing everything possible to prepare our field!
The Bears are back in action tomorrow night (Thursday, November 5th) on the turf at Ogdensburg Free Academy. Kick-off is set for a 4:00 pm start.
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