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Forbush peppered Ledford’s nets for a handful of goals in the opening 40 minutes en route to a 7-0 non-conference victory over the Lady Panthers.
“This is just something we have to work through,” said LHS coach Matt Doyle. “It’s like we got the mid-season blues going on. We played much better in the second half. It was just one of those games. Soccer balls are round and they roll. Tonight, it didn’t roll our way, seven times.”
Ledford started out flat and the Fighting Falcons were right there to take advantage. Out of the seven shots Forbush got off in the half, five found the back of the net as the Lady Panthers failed to clear out of their own end, leaving Lackey vulnerable to rebounds and wide open looks.
Jessica Baity got the scoring started less than seven minutes in when she took a pass from Erin Holcomb inside the 18-yard box and floated the ball over Lackey’s outstretched hands for a 1-0 Forbush lead. Katelynd Caudle made it a 2-0 game with 19:31 remaining in the first half after corralling a rebound in front of the LHS goal and hammering home the shot. Less than nine minutes later, Lindsay Lineberry drove in uncontested and beat Lackey one-on-one, extending the Forbush lead to 3-0.
“I think they shot seven times in the first half and five went in,” Doyle said. “That’s just beautiful finishing. If I’m [their coach] I’m happy.”
As halftime approached, the Lady Panthers would probably have loved to only be down three but Baity had other ideas. In the final 7:30 of the opening half, Baity took advantage of two loose ball chances in front of the Ledford goal, scoring a pair that all but ended any hopes of a second half miracle comeback.
The Lady Panthers (5-3, 3-1) can’t dwell too much on Friday’s setback as they host Central Carolina Conference rival Salisbury on Monday. Ledford is sitting atop the CCC at the midway point of the season, but there is still plenty of soccer to be played. The Lady Panthers have a young team with only four seniors and a plethora of underclassmen. Doyle feels that once his team can all get on the same page that Ledford can make a run at the league championship.
“Hopefully we’ll be back in the saddle on Monday,” said Doyle. “I haven’t seen Salisbury or East Davidson yet. I know we can play with West and Central Davidson, the other two I have to find out.”
Staff Writer Eliot Duke can be reached at 472-9500, ext. 233, or at eliotduke@hotmail.com.