MONMOUTH — After being held in check for almost 65 minutes, Monmouth Academy scored six times in the final 16 minutes to defeat Wiscasset 9-1 in a Class C South girls soccer quarterfinal game Wednesday.
The top-seeded Mustangs (14-1) got six goals by sisters Audrey and Haley Fletcher, two from Tia Day and another Emily Grandahl. The visiting Wolverines (5-5-2) got a goal by Gabby Chapman in the second half when the game was out of reach.
Monmouth coach Gary Trafton said his team had some chances at the beginning of the game but couldn’t convert.
“We had some opportunities that we just didn’t finish, and I didn’t think we played very well at the beginning of the second half,” Trafton said. “We got our passing game going and our girls started connecting on their through passes.”
The second half began with both teams looking sluggish through the first 13 minutes. With 26:18 left on the clock, freshman Audrey Fletcher stepped in front of a goal kick by Wiscasset keeper Lindsey Gordon and buried her second of four goals to give Monmouth Academy a 3-0 lead.
The teams traded chances for the next 10 minutes until Grandhal scored off an indirect kick to put the Mustangs up 4-0. Day scored her second of the game 84 seconds later after a long throw-in by Haley Fletcher. Haley, a senior, and Audrey, a freshman, scored the final four goals of the game.
“The three girls I have up front really made a difference and they really work well together,” Trafton said.
Monmouth had 12 shots in the first half, scoring two goals, but as Trafton said, the home team missed on a number of quality chances.
Haley Fletcher said she wasn’t sure why the team got off to a slow start. She said it wasn’t a product of something Wiscasset was doing defensively, but more a result of what Monmouth wasn’t doing.
“We knew how tough they were going to be, but I think we started out a little shaky,” the elder Fletcher said. “Once we got our passing going, we were playing better.”
Fletcher’s sister said the team sometimes has a bad first half, but then it makes up for it in the second half.
“I had a lot of opportunities, and I finished them,” Audrey Fletcher said. “We may not always have that many opportunities.”
Despite the final score, Wiscasset coach Duane Goud was proud of the way his team played, especially knowing that the No. 1 seed Mustangs had scored 75 goals in the regular season while allowing just six, including one to Wiscasset.
“We came out with the intention of holding them down, and we did it for a while,” Goud said. “We just couldn’t outlast them today.”
Goud said it’s tough to defend a team that has multiple goal scorers, and it’s equally challenging to game-plan offensively knowing Monmouth had only allowed six goals while recording 10 shutouts in 14 games.
“It’s tough, and we were hoping to capitalize, but we couldn’t without a PK,” he said. “They are a tough team and you’ve got to respect that.”
The home team opened the scoring after about 10 minutes of play. Audrey Fletcher took a pass in the box from Day and tallied her first goal of the game.
Nine minutes later, Day was a force on a long run, using several dribbling moves to get past the Wiscasset defense before sending a left-footed shot inside the far post for a 2-0 Mustangs lead.
Wiscasset had some time of possession but never really threatened in the first half.
Monmouth finished the game with 23 shots on goal and six saves. Wiscasset took six shots and made 15 saves.
The host Mustangs will face No. 5 Waynflete in a semifinal game tentatively scheduled for Friday afternoon in Monmouth. The Flyers (9-3-2) defeated Lisbon 2-0 Wednesday afternoon.
Monmouth had its season end last year after a 3-2 loss to Waynflete in the regional final. Trafton, perhaps in anticipation of a regional finals rematch, handed out Waynflete scouting reports to his players following the game Wednesday.
Jason Pafundi — 621-5663
jpafundi@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @jasonpafundiKJ
Send questions/comments to the editors.
