Salado Lady Eagles are undefeated after winning their own tournament Jan. 15-17 and handing 6A Killeen Lady Roos a defeat last week.

The girls beat Gatesville 5-0, Liberty Hill 1-0 and Wimberly 1-0 in a game decided by penalty kicks.

Sara Wilkerson led the girls against Gatesville, scoring two goals and an assist. Annie Ewton had a goal and an assist, China Saxton and Taylor Valeriano each scored a goal and Kristin Crouch and Jessica Ringstaff each scored an assist.

Annie Ewton scored Salado’s goal against Liberty Hill with an assist by Wilkerson. According to coach Karen Ewton, Ashlen LaCanne, Olivia Sula and Kristin Coach “worked hard to limit the opportunities of the Liberty Hill attacjers.”

The defense shut down Wimberly’s scoring opportunities in the championship game, led by Morgan Bird, Stephani Fleagle and Carly Nichols. Goalkeeper Sam Isbell saved three out of four penalty kicks in the shoot-out after the teams were tied at 0-0 at the end of regulation. Saxton and LaCanne each scored a penalty kick in the shoot out to give Salado a 2-1 advantage for the 1-0 win in the championship game.

“The girls rose to the occasion to defeat very good teams and find a way to win the Eagle Classic,” Coach Ewton said. “A big thank you to student body who came out to all three games and made the home field atmosphere special and gave the girls the extra push needed to win the championship.”

Prior to the tournament, the Lady Eagles blasted the Killeen Lady Roos for a 3-0 win Jan. 13 at Leo Buckley Stadium.

The Lady Eagles were led by Wilkerson, forward (two goals and an assist); Reagan Morreale—Outside Midfielder, one goal;  Saxton and Julie Craig, an assist each and Fleagle as a defender.

“The girls worked hard to secure a decisive win over Killeen,” Ewton said. “The Lady Roos have a good program, and this win gives the Lady Eagles confidence.”

They should have confidence as they took an 8-0 record, the best start ever for the Salado Lady Eagle soccer program, into a road game against China Spring on Jan. 20. The game was held after press time for this edition of the newspaper.

JV Lady Eagles

Salado JV Lady Eagles lost their soccer match 1-0 at Leo Buckley Stadium against Killeen High’s JV Lady Roos on Jan. 12.

Coach Karen Ewton said the players of the game were these: Perla Perez—Midfielder;  Taylor Schoenrock—Midfielder; Loriann Turk—Goalkeeper.

“The girls worked hard to create scoring opportunities and played a hard fought game against a well coached Killeen team,” Ewton said.

Salado 7v7 Tournament

Two Salado JV Lady Eagles teams competed in the Salado 7v7 Tournament with the following results: Salado A vs. Killeen A (1-1 tie); Salado B vs. Killeen B (1-1 tie); Salado B vs. Killeen A (1-1 tie); Salado A vs. Salado B (4-1 win for Salado A); Salado A vs. Killeen B (2-1 win).

Coach Ewton pointed to outstanding play from these girls:  Raghnild Bele—Outside Midfielder (Scored three goals); Candace Brown—Outside Midfielder (scored a goal); Rylie Stewart—Midfielder (anassist); Erin McBryde—Defender;  Madison Matsi—Outside Midfielder (two goals)

“The girls had a great time playing in the 7v7 tournament,” Ewton said. “They got a lot of touches on the ball, and learned much about passing and scoring.”

The JV girls played Killeen JV earlier this week. Results were after press time.