AV Girls LAX - Varsity

It was fun to see a good crowd travel for the first away game at Davis High School. The temperature was a little milder than previous nights but the darn rain was back. Hopefully the Dons would weather the rain and the Blue Devils.

Amador came out of the gates strong with a draw win. Bella Mayo took up the first strike but was deflected. Luckily, Kylie Racer picked up the ground ball and made a fantastic pass back to Mayo, who quickly released for a goal. The Dons worked hard to attempt another goal but were deflected and sent on the retreat. Strong defense by the Dons was foiled by a shooting space violation. Claire Lemelin sent the penalty shot away for a save. The Blue Devils had some luck of their own as they recovered the ball. Their swift midfielder kept racing past defenders until an opening saw the game tied up at one a piece. The next offensive possession saw Sophia Shiblaq adeptly maneuver through multiple defenders within the 8 meter. Curiously, a charging violation was called against Shiblaq that awarded Davis the ball. Davis used their best scorer on an isolation play to take the lead. The game started grinding down to a painfully slow pace. It appeared to be a calculated move by the Blue Devils to minimize Amador possessions. The Dons increased the midfield pressure and were able to force a turnover. Kalena Johnson was able to sneak inside for a strong goal to tie the game. This had to be the longest game time drought for Amador scoring. It had been over 10 minutes since the first goal. Davis played a patient offense but made an unfortunate error by shooting directly over the top of Amador wall of defenders. A dangerous shot penalty, with a yellow card, gave the Dons a temporary advantage. Bella Mayo was able to capitalize on the opportunity by splitting two defenders and being awarded an across the body penalty. Mayo was able to convert the free penalty shot for a 3-2 lead. Davis again grinded their offensive set until they were placed on the penalty line. The Blue Devil’s initial move off the line was turned, but she was then able to roll left and send a side arm in to tie the match once again. Both sides then ended the half with a fierce defensive battle by the Dons. Davis did win several free penalty shots but were unable to convert any of them thanks to the Dons’ defense and another save by Claire Lemelin.

The half opened in Davis’ favor but their shot would hit the pipe. Bella Mayo recovered the loose ball and the Don’s offense went to work. Lily Manos rolled through the X to find an open Sophia Shiblaq cutting through the center. Shiblaq would catch and release to put the Dons up 4-3. A quick draw win put the rock into Mady Sweeney’s hands. Sweeney would swerve inside the eighter meter and get fouled. Her penalty attempt would give the Dons their largest lead of the game. Once again good defense for the Dons produced a turnover. Unfortunately we could not convert and were sent away. Davis would take a shot against the Claire Lemelin force field and be denied. The Blue Devils maintained possession and rotated the ball. Sensing an opportunity a Don defender took a calculated risk but just missed the interception. The Blue Devil’s best shooter wouldn’t be denied with only the goalie between her. The anxiety of the crowd for both squads was palpable. Amador appeared to mimic the slow calculated play of the Blue Devils over the next several trips. With patient ball movement Maille Smith was able to connect with Sam Nimmo who was cutting down the center. Nimmo then lofted a shot right over the goalie for a fantastic goal. Next up was Senior Mackenzie Riddle faking a crease roll, but stopping at the low post to find Kylie racer cutting diagonally. Racer would place a rocket into goal to give Amador it’s first sigh of relief with a 7-4 lead with 3 minutes left on the clock. Amazingly, Davis would win the draw and find the net leaving 2 minutes on the clock. Then Davis would stun again and take the draw. Their patient offense suddenly appeared to take a desperation shot 6 meters out at 45 seconds. To even Blue Devils’ surprise it sailed true and narrowed the gap to 7-6. Bella Mayo won the final draw and patiently rotated the ball with safe passes until time expired. The Davis Blue Devils’ slow tempo and careful shot selection kept them close throughout the match. The Amador Dons appeared a little disorganized to start the match. Several players were playing out of their normal positions. In addition some bad passes resulting in turnovers wasted some early opportunities. The tempo also minimized the Don’s attempts on goal. The good news is that Amador does continue to produce offense from a number of players. In addition there were several series where the defense held strong and rotated well. We were even able to witness some intense face guarding to deny the Blue Devils best scorer. Hopefully, all these lessons translate to continued Amador success.