Athenas Beat Cross Street Rivals And Continue Streak
The CMS Athenas beat the Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens 2-1 on Wednesday night in their 12th game decided by one goal. With the win, the Athenas extended their winning streak to 10 games and remain at the top of the SCIAC standings with a record of 8-0 in league and 11-3-0 overall.
There was apprehension in the air as the Athenas prepared to play rivals Pomona-Pitzer at home Wednesday night. The Sagehens felt they had something to prove after losing 2-1 to the Athenas in the first round of play and they showed it on the field, coming out aggressive and in a formation to defend the Athenas' offensive tactics. After some close calls on both ends of the field, the Sagehens were the first to strike connecting off a free kick that hit the crossbar and came back to the six, right where a forward was waiting to head the ball into the back of the net. The Athenas immediately picked up the pace of the game and it didn't take long for them to tie it up. Junior midfielder Sarah Blavet (Austin, TX) crossed the ball in from the left to the Sagehen keeper who fumbled it and forward Shannon Dockham (SO, Martinez [pictured]) was able to tap the ball between the keeper's legs into the back of the net.
Coming out for the second half the Athenas knew they needed to score at least one more to put the Sagehens away. After some great attempts by both teams, forward Laura Hagen (FR, Bellevue, WA) was able to rocket a shot past the keeper off a beautiful cross from Blavet. With some relentless defending, the Athenas were able to hold their lead for the rest of the half and capture the 2-1 victory over the Sagehens once again.
The Athenas remain ranked 15th in the nation and 2nd in the West for the second week in a row. For their next match, CMS travels to the University of La Verne, Saturday at 11 am.
