Maroon Knights’ Red-Hot Start Helps Deal Cadets Defeat
Photo by Nick Henthorn Wheeling Central's Loni Kusic controls the ball after a pass into the midfield on Thursday during the Maroon Knights' home game against Linsly.
Photo by Nick Henthorn Wheeling Central's Loni Kusic controls the ball after a pass into the midfield on Thursday during the Maroon Knights' home game against Linsly.
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WHEELING -- As far as opening salvos go, Wheeling Central's was a Howitzer on Thursday.
Facing rival Linsly on 16th Street Field, the Maroon Knights piled up five goals in the first 11 minutes of their home outing en route to an 8-1 victory, moving Central to an identical 8-1 record on the season.
"They started out hot," Wheeling Central head coach Bill Konkle said. "They wanted to come out, set the tone early, being it’s kind of a rivalry game. I thought they did a good job coming out aggressive, trying to attack the goal, which was really good."
"Definitely not the result we wanted," Linsly head coach Aliya Okey said. "Central played a good game, a very hard-fought game. It’s always a good game, Linsly versus Central, but I think we just fell short, and hopefully next year will be better."
The Maroon blur of scores started in the very first minute of the match, where, just a few touches into the contest, Loni Kusic threaded an impressive pass through traffic to Elah Konkle, who found herself all along with a wide-open lane to the goal. The sophomore punched in a score to begin the wire-to-wire victory.
Kusic scored herself next, in the fifth minute, tracking down a ball that had been blasted down towards Linsly's goal line. Unbothered by an accompanying defender, Kusic gave herself a couple of touches to line up her shot, lacing a goal at a tight angle for the first of the junior's five goals.
Central next scored on a corner kick set piece less than three minutes later, Konkle delivering another quick score in the eighth minute.
Kusic and Elizabeth Steele got Central's next goal via an impeccable two-man game with passes back-and-forth in tight space in front of the post. The hot-potato routine ended with Kusic blasting a shot into the back of the net in the ninth minute.
Steele assisted on another Kusic goal in the 11th minute, and it was Konkle's turn to execute a back-and-forth with Kusic next, assisting on a Kusic score in the 35th minute to bring the game's tally to 6-0, where it stood at intermission.
"We focus a lot on those little 1-2 combination passes," Bill Konkle said after the game, asked about his players' nifty passing. "That’s kind of where we get a lot of our offense through the middle using the one-twos and attacking the goal. These girls have played at a high level, so they see the little spaces and kind of just go into those areas, and it’s hard for defenses to watch that runner coming through, which led to some success with early goals in today’s game."
Kusic finished with five goals and two assists. Elizabeth Steele had three assists, Elah Konkle had two goals and an assist, while Maddie Steele scored at the buzzer of Thursday's game on a long-range straightaway shot, assisted by Aly Tankovits.
Linsly got on the board out of halftime in the 42nd minute after a corner kick by Makena Aiello ricocheted off a crowd of bodies in front of the goal, and snuck into the corner of the net.
The Cadets fall to 3-2-1 with the defeat.
Wheeling Central next travels to face Sissonville on Saturday at noon. Linsly travels Saturday to face Oak Glen at 1 p.m.
CENTRAL NIPS MONARCHS
WHEELING -- Playing in a nightcap doubleheader, Wheeling Central defeated John Marshall 1-0 to move to 6-0-2 on the season.
JD Schoolcraft scored the game's lone goal in the second half, assisted by Owen Mullin.
John Marshall's record moves to 3-6 after Thursday.