Miller City wears down Lady ’Cats

By Jim Metcalfe, The Delphos Herald
Published:  Wednesday, September 2, 2009 (6 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Jefferson senior Megan Moreo gets inside Miller City’s Meagan Giblin to score one of the two Jefferson goals Monday night at the Annex.DELPHOS — Miller City’s girls soccer team has been known for its speed, athleticism and physicality through the years of a successful program.
Those Wildcats showed that again Monday night at the Annex in Delphos as they doubled-up Jefferson 4-2.
“Their speed and athleticism hurt us. They spread you out and have room to operate,” Jefferson coach Lindsey Drerup said. “They are also very aggressive. Just like against Ottoville, we had to match their physical intensity and I felt we did; we held our own.”
Neither team got much going in the first 10 minutes or so of this matchup.
Not until the 30:01 mark of the first half. Off a corner kick (one of 7 by the visitors), Jefferson’s defenders failed to clear the ball. Hannah Niese got control inside the 6-yard box and went right to left past senior keeper Jessica Bland (7 saves vs. 16 shots-on-goal) for a 1-0 lead.
The host Jeffcats stayed with it and got the equalizer at the 24:17 mark. Senior Megan Moreo got control on the right sideline and veered toward the goal. From 6 yards, she went inside the near post against Courtney Ellerbrock (2 saves, 4 shots).
That tie stood until 13:09. Miller City got a ricochet goal. Meagan Giblin had an attempt from 10 yards hit off a defender and right back to her; Bland, heading to her left, had no chance as Giblin followed it up and put it the opposite way from inside the 6-yard box and a 2-1 edge.
At the same time, Jefferson senior Megan Simerly was helped off the field with a right ankle injury.
“That hurt us,” Drerup noted. “We have some depth but she is so important to our defense. She is a wall back there. That is the one thing we cannot afford; injuries over the long term.”
However, the Lady Jeffcats fought back to knot the score at 2 with 5:40 showing in the half. This time, freshman Jenna Moreo threaded a through ball to her old sister, Megan, for a 1-on-1 chance. She went from the left post to the right side from 12 yards.
However, the visiting Wildcats went up for good with three minutes to go in the first half. Again, they got a break. Lauren Niese launched a long shot from the right wing that took a tough hop and hit off a defender in front of the goal, deflecting the orb into the net for a 3-2 edge.
As the second half wore on, Jefferson showed signs of wearing down against Miller City’s depth.
At the 29:55 mark of the second half, Miller City got that all-important fourth goal. Off a handball and free kick from 35 yards, Niese threaded a pass from the left side to Marissa Schroeder on the right post. She kneed the ball into the cords from close range for a 4-2 edge.
Jefferson’s defense locked down their blue and gold-clad foe the rest of the way but the offense could only manage one shot-on-goal the second 40 minutes: a shot by Megan Moreo that Ellerbrock gobbled up at 13:18.
“We’re disappointed in the loss but overall, I am still pleased. I have a great bunch of girls and we have come a long way,” Drerup added. “We’ve never been competitive with Miller City; they’ve always dominated us, so that’s a sign of improvement on our part. Miller City has so many girls that can beat you 1-on-1 and we contained them for the most part. There are areas we have to get better at: first touches, ball possession and keeping possession; but we are getting there.”
Jefferson welcomes in Crestview for a 5 p.m. tussle Thursday.