Donoho denies Lady Cards
- Updated: April 26, 2017
Donoho’s girls edge Sacred Heart, denies Lady Cardinals spot in the 1A-3A playoffs; Baker’s hat trick powers boys to 4-1 victory
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
Lily Wiedmer’s 30th goal of the season — Donoho’s 99th this year as a team — sent the weary Lady Falcons to a 1-0 win over even wearier Sacred Heart and denied the Lady Cardinals a spot in the Class 1A-3A playoffs.
Wiedmer scored in the 25th minutes on a through ball from eighth-grader Maggie Miller.
The win helped Donoho complete an undefeated season in area play. Four of their eight area victories were decided by one goal, including these last two over Sacred Heart.
“That was a goal of ours at the start of the season; that’s where we wanted to be,” Donoho coach Jay Jenkins said. “I’m proud of our girls. We had some awful tough games. It’s a good area, a competitive area. We feel fortunate to have won today. We’ve got a perseverance inside us that’s … fun to coach.”
After losing to the Lady Falcons Tuesday night on a Wiedmer goal in the final three minutes, Sacred Heart faced a must-win situation to claim the second spot from the area. Instead, Glencoe will be the No. 2.
The Lady Cardinals, playing their third match in as many days, had several opportunities in the final 20 minutes to get the equalizer, but couldn’t find the back of the net. They regularly shot the ball high either sailing it over the crossbar or into Donoho keeper Campbell Hagan’s arms.
Sacred Heart coach Caitlin Perkins was hoping Tuesday game’s would spur her players to be aggressive at the start, but she said “you could tell from the get-go there was no pick up” in their play.
“Either they were psyched out or they just didn’t want it enough,” she said.
While Jenkins was pleased his team won the game, speaking as a member of the Anniston City Council he was disheartened another Anniston team missed out going to the playoffs.
In addition to both Donoho teams, Anniston’s girls and Saks’ boys have made the tournament, which begins Thursday. Oxford’s boys also made the field.
“That would have been really special,” Jenkins said. “It’s fun to watch soccer grow in our community and it really is starting to grow well. I’m proud of the Anniston girls and their ability to get in and I’m sorry for Sacred Heart.”
BOYS
Donoho 4, Sacred Heart 1: Mitchell Baker scored a hat trick, running his career goal total to 128, and had an assist as the Falcons clipped the Cardinals for the second time in as many days. Tej Patel scored Donoho’s other goal. Spencer Wigley scored Sacred Heart’s goal.
Noah Wright, Shea Buckner and Hinton Owsley were credited with assists on the other Falcons’ goals.
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