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Savannah Country Day head girls soccer David Hooker was in the same situation last year in a game against St. Vincent’s.
The Hornets dropped a decision (1-1) on penalty kicks (5-4), and they finished their season in the round of eight to eventual state champion Oconee County.
This time around, Hooker and his Hornets will be looking for a different outcome against St. Vincents.
The two teams will meet at Memorial Stadium Tuesday night to decide the Class 3A Region 3 title.
“It’s going to be a tight game like it always seems to be,” said Hooker. “We were very determined last year, but it didn’t work out for us. The girls are really looking forward to it.
“A lot of the girls from both teams know each other, and there is a good number of them that play club soccer together. It’s an added incentive to the game.”
Country Day will enter the game with an overall 11-2 record, recently dropping a 3-1 decision to Holy Innocents. Prior to that, the Hornets other loss occurred Feb. 9 against Greater Atlanta Christian, 4-2. Since then, the Hornets have won nine straight.
Hooker indicated that his team has multiple goal scorers, but the Hornets are led by leading scorers senior A.C. Davis and junior Sophia Okumu. He stated that it is a young squad, as two freshmen have alternated in the nets. The Hornets have allowed a total of 18 goals all season.
Davis and fellow senior Ella Stone have helped set the pace, and junior Harris Stone has been a major contributor.
Hooker expects his team to be ready.
“We held them to a few shots last year, but we made some errors,” he noted. “They are well coached and have some good players. We’ll see how it goes.”
St. Vincent’s will enter with an overall 9-4-1 mark, their last game was a 1-0 victory over May River recently. The Saints are on a six-game winning streak, St. Vincent’s advanced to the state semifinal last season, losing a 2-1 decision to Bremen.
Senior Mary Grace Myers and freshman Olivia Akins have been the team’s leading goal scorers.
Co-head coach Sara Stewart, who shares duties with Ciara Hagan, sees plenty of chemistry continuing to develop on her club led by 11 seniors.
“The girls have been working really hard to come together as a team,” she said. “The seniors have been working to integrate the underclassmen because they know to continue to be successful, we need everyone to do their part to help us get better.
“We have been moving the ball well as a team, which is something we have worked on. That starts with our goalkeeper (senior Maggie Weeks) and goes all the way to our forwards.”
Stewart is well aware of what’s ahead,
“Country Day is as strong this year as we have seen them the past few years,” she added. “They are well coached and have lots of talent, and that works well together.
“We are looking forward to our battle with them.”
PHOTO CREDIT: Courtesy Savannah Country Day School and Magnolia Creations Photography
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