Coronado downs Green Valley, takes sole possession of Southeast lead
Coaches will often say after a poor performance that their team wasn’t playing its game.
Green Valley girls soccer coach Joel Parks said his squad wasn’t even playing the right sport in Tuesday’s 2-0 loss to visiting Coronado.
“We went right back into (Coronado’s) game, which is tennis, it’s not soccer,” Parks said. “We’re not going to win a game like that.
“Nobody is going to control the ball or play the game the way it’s supposed to be played if everyone is just going to whack and run and whack and run,” Parks added. “It’ll beat a young team like this, but it won’t win you no championship.”
Veronica Subu scored both goals in a victory that gave the Cougars (8-1-2, 8-0-1) sole possession of first place in the Southeast League.
Coronado had 11 shots on goal and rarely allowed the Gators (9-1-1, 7-1-1) to maintain possession on its side of the field.
“We have a mature team and a mature defense, and they work well together,” Cougars coach Dana Neel said. “Working together keeps the ball out of our end of the field.”
Neel stuck with the game plan she used in Friday’s 1-1 tie against Green Valley, but her team’s gritty play proved to be a deciding factor in this contest.
“I have a very physical team,” Neel said. “I think that works to our advantage when the ball is in the air.”
Parks didn’t disagree.
“They’re bigger, older and can push my little people around,” he said. “When you play a possession-type team, that sort of thing won’t work.”
Coronado put seven shots on goal in the first 20 minutes, all deflected by Gators goalkeeper Kylie Lowe. At the 25-minute mark, Subu took a pass from Addison Guida and scored from 12 feet out.
Shortly after halftime, Subu got the ball from Bailey Hagen in a 2-on-1 situation. Her shot sailed into the goal at the 46-minute mark.
“My team was calm,” Neel said. “They gained some confidence having played (Green Valley) before. We worked hard on linking things together. When you maintain possession of the ball you maintain possession of the game.”
Coronado goalie Alexis Mansoor picked up the shutout but faced only two shots.
“Nobody is going to control the ball or play the game the way it’s supposed to be played if everyone is just going to whack and run and whack and run,” Parks said. “It’ll beat a young team like this but it won’t win you no championship.”