Canon-McMillan scores early, often in playoff victory
CANONSBURG — It didn’t take Canon-McMillan long to get going in Monday’s WPIAL Class 4A girls playoff soccer match at Allegheny Health Network Field.
The Big Macs scored on their first shot on target and cruised to an 11-0 victory over Hempfield in the first round of the postseason.
Canon-McMillan (12-3-1) plays Penn-Trafford (13-4) in the quarterfinals on Thursday at Penn-Trafford. The start time has not been determined.
“The plan was to start fast and put us in a good spot, and that’s what we were able to do,” Canon-McMillan coach Matt Fonagy said. “We have a lot of respect for Penn-Trafford. They are section champs, so we are going with the mindset that it’s going to be a really tough game.
“Hopefully, we can do what we want to be successful. We play in the same section as Peters Township, so we are 100 percent battle tested.”
The Big Macs scored the only goal they would need 44 seconds into the match when Jenna Gasper put a shot behind Spartans goalkeeper Lila Clark after receiving a cross from Sarah Coffman for a 1-0 lead.
Coffman assisted on Ella Shields’ tally at 36:21 of the first half for a 2-0 advantage. Canon-McMillan scored on two of its first three shots on target.
Coffman scored at 30:11 of the first half. Abigail Ault had the assist for a 3-0 lead.
Rachel Tomley finished a run down the middle of the field with a right-footed howitzer at 22:31 of the first half for a four-goal cushion.
Coffman set up Ault with 19:10 left in the opening half.
Sydney Hares and Gwendolyn Compeggie scored the sixth and seventh goals for the Big Macs, who had a 7-0 halftime lead.
Shields, Tomley, Kiara Pugh and Dylan Stadler scored in the second half. Gasper assisted on Shields’ goal.
Canon-McMillan had 25 shots on target and earned eight corner kicks.
“We were able to keep the pressure on them and we also got some other kids into the game,” Fonagy said.
The Big Macs maintained possession for the majority of the match. The Spartans didn’t have a shot on target in the first half, but earned a corner kick that was taken by Jessi Jury, who also had a shot attempt blocked. Hempfield had three shots on goal.
Clark was peppered with shots, but made 14 saves.
“Lila Clark has a never-quit attitude,” Hempfield coach Jim Jones said. “She came from softball, where she played shortstop, and wanted to try out soccer three years ago. I trained her and we haven’t looked back. She is a tough kid.”
Canon-McMillan starting goalkeeper Skyler Smith made one save in the second half before exiting the match with 22:30 remaining for Elizabeth Ilconich, who stopped two shots.
Hempfield’s season comes to an end with a 5-14 record.
“Making the playoffs was a goal for our season,” Jones said. “These girls have been through a lot the last couple of years, and to come out and play the way that they did was pretty impressive. We are going to lose five seniors this year, and they are going to be hard to replace, but we have a pretty big eighth-grade class coming up next year.”