Lady Jackets Soccer Drown Out Pioneers

by Tim Smith

The Cedarville Lady Jackets easily dispatched the Malone Pioneers 4-0 on Saturday. The game was a much needed pick-me-up after their loss to Walsh, improving their record to 3-1 overall.

“We just wanted to come out and give it our all, be first to every ball and really start connecting with each other,” midfielder Hannah Atkinson said, who produced two goals in the winning effort.

Atkinson was not wrong about the Jackets’ wanting to lay everything on the line in this game. The ladies came out firing, with a strong shot on goal by Hannah Sareyka in the fifth minute. It didn’t stop there, though. The Lady Jackets were in the attacking third the majority of the game, creating many scoring opportunities. They finally cashed in right before halftime with Hannah Atkinson’s goal in the 43rd minute.

The Lady Jackets continued their aggressive assault into the second half, with Lindsey Smith scoring the second goal for Cedarville off a beautiful assist by Creslyn Van Dyck.

From that point on, the Lady Jackets took control of the Pioneers, keeping possession of the ball and creating multiple scoring chances. The Lady Jackets would connect on two more goals in the match: An own goal forced by Hannah Atkinson in the 53rd minute and a dazzling strike by freshman Olivia Hoffman in the 59th.

Head coach Jonathan Meade was very proud of his players’ performance and attitude.

“We scored four goals,” said Coach Meade, “When you score goals, you feel confident, so that’s definitely a good takeaway.”

Along with improving the Lady Jackets to 3-1, this game held a special place in the heart of both the coaches and players of Cedarville.

“This is actually our first shutout in the regular season and that was something we really wanted to accomplish,” Meade said with a smile.

Atkinson said the future seems promising for the Lady Jackets.

“I just think we need to keep building from here and get better,” said Atkinson. “This is a good stepping stone for that.”

The Lady Jackets next matchup is against Lake Erie on Thursday, and they hope to carry over this momentum against the Storm and for the rest of the season.