Girls Soccer Bounces Back For First Win

The Lady Eagles (1-4) netted their first win of the season against Laquey (1-4). They soared past the Lady Hornets in a 4-1 road victory on Apr. 1.

Sullivan was looking to bounce back after losing to Pacific the day before. They were unsure what to expect from Laquey, a team that finished fourth in Class 1 last year. But the Lady Eagles were hungry for victory and jumped to a 3-0 lead by halftime, then added their fourth goal later. 

Head Coach Matt Wiegers was proud to see his team rebound with a rout and snap their four-loss skid. “We knew Laquey had graduated some of their key players, and we weren’t sure what to expect,” he shared. “Early on, we could tell the girls were hungry for a win. We controlled the play the majority of the game in Laquey’s end, and that was a big boost for our defense to take a little pressure off from previous games.”

Kloe Griefe topped Sullivan with two assists and racked up two points.

Jada Adams fired a goal and four shots, earning two points.

Ava Hayes scored once on her three attempts with two points. 

Eden Lambert and Tessa Newman both tallied a goal, two shots and two points. 

Ella Kirk blasted three shots in Sullivan’s first win of the season.

In her third varsity start, goalie Molly Pilkenton successfully swatted the Lady Hornets from the net.

Pacific 3, Sullivan 1

The day before crushing Laquey, Sullivan found themselves on the ropes against Pacific (6-0-1). The Lady Eagles gave up a 1-0 halftime lead and fell 3-1 to the No. 8-ranked team in Missouri.

Wiegers hoped his team could learn from the loss to always keep the same intensity from start to end. He stated, “We actually felt like our game was trending in the right direction against Pacific. The girls started the week hungry to get back to work, and they showed it for about 60 minutes until they ran out of gas in the second half against Pacific.”

Newman put the Lady Eagles on the board with 55 seconds until halftime. Lohden lobbed her the assist, allowing Newman to chip in the go-ahead goal. Newman also topped Sullivan with two points.

The Lady Eagles struggled to maintain their lead in the second half. Pacific locked Sullivan out of their attacking third and seized control of the midfield. The Lady Indians would silence them with three unanswered scores for the comeback victory.

Andi Giebler and Griefe kept Sullivan in the fight, logging a shot on goal.

Molly Pilkenton clutched five saves at the net for the Lady Eagles.

Upcoming Events

The Lady Eagles kicked off week four on Apr. 8, when they hosted the St. Clair Bulldogs. Stats were unavailable at press time.

Sullivan will continue their homestand the following day against Festus at 5 p.m. The two teams previously clashed in a scrimmage, where Sullivan fell just 3-2.

The Lady Eagles cap off their week with a road trip to Fatima. They battle the Comets on Thursday, Apr. 10 at 5 p.m.

Coach Wiegers said that over these next three games, Sullivan will focus on “starting to gel as a team.” He explained, “We have reached a point where we feel comfortable with our lineup, and we have to start capitalizing with 80 minutes of complete play. It doesn’t take much for me to get the girls motivated to play against St. Clair. That is a natural reaction to a conference rival. 

“I think they will also be hungry to play a full game against Festus after coming up short in an abbreviated jamboree at the start of the season. Both games are at home, which we like the way we play on our turf, so hopefully [by] next week, we’re talking about three wins.”

Sullivan will travel to Owensville on Apr. 15, then host St. James two days afterward. They play the Lady Tigers at 5 p.m. on Kicking and Swinging for a Cure Night.