Covenant nabs narrow win at home

Save for the occasional fast break the other way, the Covenant girls soccer team spent close to the entire game in Eastern Mennonite territory.
And yet, while the Eagles out shot the Flames 16 to one, only Katie Estep was able to find the back of the net in a 1-0 Covenant victory.
Eagles forward Erin Hauser had a handful of scoring opportunities in both halves, but when her shots weren’t bouncing off of the goal post, they were landing in the hands of Mennonite goal keeper Caitlin Bucher.
“It was frustrating but still good to get the win,” Hauser said. “Their defense was really physical.”
In the first half, Eastern defender Kristen Miners kept the Eagles forwards from penetrating the middle of the field, keeping them mostly on the right wing.
“I was pleased up until they got that short corner and scored,’ said Flames coach Jason Capps. “I was going to feel good if we got out of there 0-0 or 1-1.”
The game’s only goal came three minutes into the second half, when Emily Klein’s corner kick found Estep in the middle of the field 25 feet out from the goal.
“Emily put a nice ball across the center and it just kind of bobbled around there,” Estep said. “I came out and I was just in the right spot. I guess it was just placement and I was able to keep it low.”
Hauser came into the game with 95 career goals and is on pace to pass the century mark in a matter of a few games
“I’ve tried to not let in my mind, but it’s in the back of my head,” Hauser said of getting to 100. “It’s a goal that I had coming into the season, but I’m just going to play my game and try and get the win. That’s the most important thing.”
The Eagles’ defense and midfielders dominated the middle of the field. The Flames had a trio of fast breaks, but two of them ended with the Covenant defenders pinching off the play and the other with Virginia Hill making her lone save of the game on the only shot she faced.
“Offensively it kind of wasn’t our day to get an easy goal or a lucky goal,” said Covenant coach Pat Campbell. “So credit Eastern on their good defense. For us, it just wasn’t the day to get the lucky bounce.”
Despite the frustration his squad faced on Tuesday, Campbell thinks the biggest distinction between his current team and last year’s VIC State Championship squad is the offensive potential.
“They’re a little faster and a little older,” Campbell said. “Probably the biggest difference — because we were such a defensive team last year — this year we’ve been able to create more offense.”
Covenant lost just a handful of players from last years title team, but is still primarily composed of sophomores, something that Campbell confessed slipped his mind occasionally.
“I forget they’re so young,” Campbell said. “Sure I’ve got four seniors, but there are no juniors. I expect a heck of a lot of them because they’re so good at what they do. I forget they’re freshman and sophomores. I’m asking more of them and they do it.”
Covenant hosts Liberty Christian on Thursday at 5 p.m.