Milton, Georgia – The Cambridge Lady Bears won 7-3 at home in a non-region game, against the Marist High School War Eagles, on Tuesday, March 16, 2021.
The Region 4A first place Marist War Eagles came to Cambridge High School on Tuesday night to play a non-region game against our Lady Bears ranked 4th in a tough Region 6A. The game started out with some fast footwork from the Bears starters. Junior Ella Ciardullo danced her way past a defender and got a pass off to Jordynn Dudley who took her first shot of the night, but it was deflected by the Marist defense. On the Cambridge side, Olivia Barfield made a strong save on a Marist shot 18 minutes into play.
Not long after, with 20 minutes on the clock in the first half, the offense took off. The Lady Bears took a corner kick which resulted in a second corner kick. Freshman, Natalie Leibel took the corner, the goal was well defended but Ella Ciardullo ended up with the ball just outside the box. She made a fast pass to Jordynn Dudley who took a hard shot to score her first goal of the night. Three minutes later, Ella Ciardullo took a corner kick that soared in front of the goal and was headed into the net by Senior, Kyndall Jenkins. Less than three minutes later, Junior defender, Ella Crawley got the play started by passing a ball up to Natalie Leibel in the mid-field. After a few great passes by the Lady Bears, Ella Ciardullo scored to make the score 3-0 with a lot of time left on the clock.
With 11 minutes left on the clock in the first half, Jordyn Dudley passed the ball to Sophomore Katelyn Hardwick who took a strong shot that was saved, but not controlled, by the Marist goalie. Sophomore Maddie Smith charged in and popped the ball into the net for the goal. Two minutes later, Jordynn Dudley was tripped in the box and awarded a penalty kick with which she easily scored for her second goal on the night. Less than one minute later, Jordynn won a battle for the ball with a Marist defender and scored her third goal of the night. This is Jordynn Dudley's second Hat Trick of the season. The Bears would go into halftime up 6-0.
Cambridge opened the second half with a 7th goal, the 2nd goal of the night for Junior, Ella Ciardullo. The Bears were not only winning on offense, but the defense was also protecting the back. Seniors Safiya Said and Maggie Smith; and Juniors Ella Crawley and Katelyn Byrne played smart, fast defense. Five minutes into the second half, Sophomore defender, Sydney Arant made an aggressive play to save a goal, when the Marist forward got around Abby Fields in the goal. Arant got behind Fields and kicked the ball out of the net, saving the goal attempt. Minutes later, Marist had a corner kick and Sydney Arant headed the ball out of play.
The War Eagles did not stop competing. Fourteen minutes into the second half they scored their first goal. Senior, Abby Fields came out to make the play, but the Marist forwards made the shot. Marist would score again 10 minutes later, and a third goal on a free kick three minutes after that. The score was now 7-3 and the Marist fans and bench were getting excited and loud for their players. One minute after their third goal, the Marist Head Coach was unhappy with a decision by the referee and received a yellow card for his reaction.
The Lady Bears would not stop fighting. They played strong defense for the remainder of the game and contained the ball exactly where they wanted it. They would not allow any more goals in the game and won with a score of 7-3.
The Lady Bears are back to region play on Friday, March 19th when they host Creekview High School at 6:00 pm.
Let's Go Bears!
