VVHS Girls Best Pirates With Last Minute Goal, 1-0

By VERNON ROBISON

The Progress

It was an all-out battle of endurance on Monday, Oct. 4 when the Virgin Valley High School Girls Soccer team came to play the Pirates of Moapa Valley. Both teams were locked in an 80 minute chess match of back and forth. But it was the Bulldogs who finally pulled off a last minute win against the Pirates, 1-0.

The two teams were evenly matched throughout the game. Each team spent the evening launching offensive drives against the other, and then pulling back to defend their goals. This went on for nearly the entirety of the game.

Both goal keepers were kept busy throughout the match. Senior Erin Ofori ably defended her Virgin Valley goal, repelling multiple attempts from the Pirate offense.

Pirate goalie Savanna Burt, a sophomore, had a stellar match, holding out strong in the Moapa penalty box. She fearlessly turned back every Bulldog attempt on goal…well, every attempt except one.

That one happened in the last few seconds of the game. A pair of fouls called against the Pirates set up a couple of tense moments in the Moapa 18-box at the end of the game.

The first one gave the Lady Bulldogs a direct kick from the corner of the penalty box. But that shot was unsuccessful and the Pirates were able to pull out of harms way.

Then, only a few moments later, the Pirates got a second foul called against them in the exact same place, setting up the same free kick situation.

Bulldog senior Dani Correa was selected to take the shot and the Moapa defenders lined up to to hold it off. Correa rocketed the ball past the Pirate defenses and it squeezed into the right corner of the net for a 1-0 Bulldog lead.

There were only 40 seconds left on the clock. The Pirates tried to pull together a frantic last minute offensive drive. But there just wasn’t enough time and the score stood.

The Bulldogs came away with their fifth straight victory and a 1-0 league record, putting them at the top of the league standings.

The Pirates gave up their only league loss of the season ending up with a 2-1 league record and a second place spot.
“It was a heartbreaker,” said MVHS Head Coach Lisa Cornwall. “The girls played awesome. But it was, you know, the last 40 seconds! It was just how things fell. That is how the game goes sometimes.”

Cornwall said that her team always looks forward to games against their Virgin Valley rivals.
“It is always just a really good competition,” she said. “When they are out there on the field they compete hard. Then after the game they all hug. There is a lot of mutual respect. It is a positive thing and we are always appreciative of it.”

“It was a great game of back and forth down until the last couple of minutes,” said VVHS Head Coach Scott Trimming. “The game really could have gone to either team.”

“We showed some good defensive play,” Trimming added. “Our outside defenders Adison Snyder and Kacie Garrett were able to slow Moapa down.”

The two teams will meet again, this time on Bulldog turf, on Monday, October 18. Game time is at 6:30 pm.