Christopher picks up first win Friday
Alex Gerberick had four quality chances to give the Christopher High girls varsity soccer team a first-half lead – and then some. But each time, the sophomore either couldn’t quite get enough juice behind her shot or somehow the ball just hopped past her toe.
The close-but-no-cigar beginning to the game prompted Gerberick to shout “there must be a hole in my foot” as she sprinted past the Cougars’ bench.
The almosts didn’t last long.
Gerberick got her goal in the second half as did four other Cougars in a 6-0 victory over visiting Kirby on Friday.
“I’m just really happy for the girls,” CHS head coach Janae Pimentel said. “They have been waiting for this the past three games. Hopefully this starts a whole new chapter.”
The Cougars (1-3), had a rough start to the season, dropping three straight games as well as losing starting goalie Lauren Ginn. Filling in for Ginn on Friday, Alexandra Delgado didn’t see much in the way of shots, but did stop a couple of slow rollers her direction.
“We are going to use the rest of the preseason figuring out who will play goalie for us,” Pimentel added.
Despite having just eight position players plus the goalie, Kirby, a new school based in Santa Cruz, displayed tight and controlled defense, keeping close watch on their net in the first 40 minutes.
CHS manufactured a plethora of shots on goal in the first half but an agile Kirby goalie kept the ball clear of her net as the two teams went into halftime tied 0-0.
Freshman Anita Lopez, who battled a nagging ankle injury throughout the tilt, broke the scoreless tie in the 57th minute, taking a cross from fellow freshman Caitlin McCarry. Lopez connected just enough with the pass, sneaking the ball into the net.
“We have been playing teams in higher leagues so far so this was kind of a relief for us,” McCarry said. “This just shows us that our hard work is starting to pay off.”
The initial goal opened the flood gates to a wave of goals.
Sophomore Catherine Vergen collected an unsettled ball in box and deposited the hot potato for a Cougars’ 2-0 lead. Minutes later, Lopez ignited a rush into the box with some nifty dribbling. Her initial shot was batted away, however, McCarry turned Johnny-on-the-spot and directed the rebound for a 3-0 advantage.
Junior co-captain Catherine Bright floated an unreachable shot from 25 yards out that hit nylon inches below the crossbar for a 5-0 lead. McCarry scored off of a corner kick that sailed into traffic and ricocheted in off a Kirby defender before Gerberick topped the pile of scores with her tally.
