LEWISTON — Halftime was filled with talking and listening.
But after sitting in a circle during the intermission, the Edward Little girls’ soccer team put that discussion into action.
“When we get down, our team is really good at talking together, working together and listening to each other about what we have to do better,” said senior Kory Norcross. “We just talked about winning the 50-50 balls. It seemed like we didn’t want it as much as them. So we told ourselves to pick it up and play our game.”
EL broke open a tie game with a strong second half in a 6-1 win over Lewiston. Norcross, Olivia Paione and Taylor Landry each had a pair of goals.
“Every time we play Lewiston, it’s always a game,” said Edward Little coach Craig Latuscha. “No matter the lineup we have or the lineup that they have. It’s always a game. They came out and scored the first goal. To be quite honest, we were on our heels. They beat us to a lot of 50-50 balls in the first half.”
EL changed that in a hurry. With the game tied 1-1, Norcross put EL (2-2) ahead with a goal at 4:58. Off a corner kick, Norcross converted a loose ball in front.
Then with 25:48 left, the Red Eddies rushed the net and Paione put in a rebound for a 3-1 lead.
“We started to shoot some balls on net and started to crash the goal,” Latuscha said. “It started to pay off. Once we got that second and third goal, we built the momentum.”
Lewiston (0-4-1) struggled to counter the attack. The Blue Devils couldn’t slow down EL or transition the other way. With Norcross and Landry leading the charge up front, EL was able to possess effectively and test the Blue Devil defense. Calli Murray and Paione were strong in the middle while Emily Jacques played well on the wing.
“Since we have Danny (Rock) back at fullback, we’re able to move some more girls up front that have experience,” Norcross said. “That helped us a lot to have more experience up there.”
Landry made it 4-1 with 23:40 left when she beat a defender and the keeper to a loose ball. Paione netted her second of the game with 6:10 left with a shot from the left side. Norcross finished the scoring with a tally with 33 seconds left.
Lewiston had a late surge and got a nice bid by Alanna Taylor but EL keeper Molly Murray was there for the stop. Murray finished with eight saves. Lewiston keeper Ally Frechette made nine stops in net for Lewiston.
The Blue Devils threatened early in the game with shots by Adela Kalilwa and Kristina Blais. Then with 14:58 left, a loose ball in front went in off an Edward Little defender. Maegan Mathon had gotten a foot on it and steered it toward the left of the goal. Kalilwa was the nearest Blue Devil to the ball when it went in off a defender.
That lead lasted until 4:55 remained when Landry took a Calli Murray pass and fired a shot from the right side for the equalizer.
“That was a big goal,” said Latuscha said. “I’ve been changing things up a little bit. I put my starting keeper for three years up to striker. She can finish. It really picked us up.”
EL had played a solid game in a 2-1 loss against Mt. Ararat earlier in the week and was able to follow that up with a solid performance Thursday.
“We played a great game against Mt. Ararat,” Latuscha said. “To be down 1-0 against your rival is a tough thing. They fought adversity, and I’m proud of my girls.”
kmills@sunjournal.com
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- Taylor Landry’s shot on goal sails past the fingertips of Lewiston goal keep Ally Frechette during the first half of their game Thursday in Lewiston. It was Edward Little’s first goal of the game and tied the score 1-1 with 4 minutes to go in the half. Edward Little won 6-1.
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- Lewiston’s Jess Cote fights with Edward Little’s Sarah Hammond over the ball during the first half of their game Thursday in Lewiston. The Red Eddies won 6-1.
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- Lewiston’s Kristina Blais leaps to stop the ball as she and Calli Murray collide during their game Thursday evening in Lewiston. The Red Eddies won 6-1.
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- Edward Little’s Kaylee Jipson elbows Lewiston’s Jess Cote in the back as they tussle over the ball during the first half of their game Thursday in Lewiston. The Red Eddies topped the Blue Devils 6-1.
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- Edward Little’s Molly Murray stops the ball just in time as Lewiston’s Maegan Mathon speeds to the net during the first half of their game Thursday in Lewiston. The Blue Devils were only able to get one past Murray and the Red Eddies won 6-1.
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