Milton, Georgia – The Cambridge Lady Bears Soccer team won 6-1 in a region game, against the River Ridge High School Knights, on Tuesday, March 22, 2022.
The action in this game got started quickly. Very early in the first half, Sophomore Aurora Gaines was pushed in the offensive box and was awarded a PK. Gaines scored easily and the Lady Bears took the quick lead at 1-0. The Knights answered just minutes later when a Bears defender was called for a trip on the opposite end. Senior Captain Goalkeeper Olivia Barfield blocked the shot but the Knights ultimately scored on the rebound, tying the game at one goal per side.
The Lady Bears did not take long to answer back. Within a few minutes, Freshman Defender Raygen Lewis got things moving with an expert pass out of the back to Senior Captain Ella Ciardullo. Ciardullo was fast and made forward progress before passing the ball to Junior Jordynn Dudley into the corner. Dudley was well defended and made a big pass to Sophomore Natalie Leibel who was moving forward on the opposite side of the net. Leibel settled the ball and took a big shot to put the Bears up 2-1.
As in every game, the Lady Bears defense was playing fast and tough. Sophomore Kaitlyn Clark played strong against the Knights offense, preventing them gaining on the score. Freshman midfielder Maddie Ward helped the defense as well by making fast plays to put the ball back on offense. Midway through the first half, Ward made a great steal from a Knights midfielder to get the ball to Senior Ella Ciardullo. Ciardullo's shot on goal was deflected and Junior Jordynn Dudley took a second effort shot that was saved by the goalkeeper.
The Lady Bears offense kept shooting on the Knights goal, taking a total of 29 shots on goal. With 14 minutes left in the first half of play, Senior Ella Ciardullo showed incredible technical ability paired with her signature speed by breaking through two defenders and taking a hard shot on goal that went just wide. Four minutes later, Freshman defender Raygen Lewis again made a sharp pass to Senior Captain Kate Leibel who quickly passed the ball to Sophomore Aurora Gaines in the front. Gaines' pressure with the ball forced the Goalie to come out, but she missed the save and Gaines was able to finish the shot putting the Bears on top 3-1.
The final 5 minutes of the first half had a lot of action. With 4 minutes on the clock, Senior Ella Ciardullo passed from the left corner to the right foot of Junior Jordynn Dudley who was waiting near the middle of the field. Dudley quickly settled the ball and took her shot which went directly into the net low and to the right. It looked as if the Lady Bears would go into half-time leading 4-1, but with 1 minute left on the clock, Senior Captain Ella Ciardullo took a long, hard shot from the 15-yard line to score decisively in the back of the net. At the half-time buzzer, Cambridge was leading 5-1.
The game started to get a lot more physical in the second half of play. Senior Captain Olivia Barfield made two big saves quickly. Barfield made 8 saves over the course of the entire game. The Knights players were frustrated with the scoreboard and there were several pushes and unnecessary shoves made on the Lady Bears players. This style of play was legitimately testing the athletes' patience and calls were made for the Referee to take control of the field. With 14 minutes left, Junior Jordynn Dudley sealed the game with a long shot to bring the score to 6-1 where it would remain until the final buzzer.
The Lady Bears go on the road for a region game against Riverwood High School on Friday, March 25th at 6:00 pm.
Let's Go Bears!
