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Columbia's Mia Brasel possesses the ball against Fort White on Thursday night. (BRENT KUYKENDALL/Lake City Reporter)
For the second time this season, Columbia blanked Fort White to earn the season sweep in the match of county schools.
This time, however, the visiting Indians offered significantly more resistance against the larger school than in their previous meeting in the season opener, when the Tigers won 8-0 via mercy rule on Nov. 11.
Sacha Rueda scored two goals, and Nikolette Sossie added a goal and an assist to help Columbia to a 6-0 victory over Fort White on a cool Friday evening at CYSA. Kyndall Norris, Mariah Ross and Mia Brasel also scored goals — all in the second half — after the Tigers (6-2) led 3-0 at halftime.
Despite entering the current holiday break with a three-game winning streak, CHS head coach Chip Garner says his team is still far from peak form.
“We're still polishing, there's still a lot of work to do,” Garner said. “Off the ball movement, the communication can still be better than it is."
The Indians (3-5-1), on the other hand, showed significant improvement from the first meeting, thanks to an infusion of recently promoted eighth-graders who were inserted into the lineup. It was a needed boost in the absence of goal-scorer Marlee Hunt (red card).
“I thought they did a lot better (than in the season-opener), tonight especially with a quarter of our team missing tonight,” Fort White head coach Alexis Angstadt said. “I was especially impressed with the ability of our defense to keep them (from mercy-ruling us). The plain fact is that they got tired. I felt if they would have kept that endurance up, it would have been a better game.”
Angstadt was also encouraged by the effort of senior captain Elisa Nixon, who turned away 19 shots after being forced out of action for a month due to a shoulder injury. Defenders Chloe Collier and Cammill Douglas, as well as forward Macie MacLaren, accounted for the improved play after being promoted from the middle school team.
Despite the Indians' boost from the youth, Columbia still played like the more established squad. The Tigers broke through 13 minutes into the match when Rueda took a cross from the right wing from Sossie, and volleyed the shot from about 10 yards for the 1-0 lead.
Eighteen minutes later, Rueda made it 2-0 on a close-range 8-yard shot, thanks to an assist from Jenavieve Farer from the right wing. Sossie then scored about five minutes before halftime as she dribbled up the middle past two defenders to beat Nixon on a one-on-one shot.
After the 3-goal halftime lead, Norris, a defender, scored from the top of the 18-yard circle four minutes into the second half.
CHS was awarded a penalty kick in the 60th minute when Peyton Wheeldon was tripped by a Fort White defender shortly after dribbling into the penalty box from the left wing. Mariah Ross converted the kick before Mia Basel capped off the scoring with a goal in the 72nd minute off an assist from Wheeldon, who started as the CHS goalkeeper in the first half before trading places on the field with midfielder Jenavieve Farer.
“Probably the unsung heroes of the season for us are our two center backs Lilly (Schneider) and Kyndall,” Garner said. “They're constantly giving us opportunities, distributing perfectly (upon gaining possession). Of course, we have Mia going 100 percent all the time, and stepping up as a captain and motivator for our team.
“(Sossie) is another one who has been a quiet, important person in our midfield. She does a good job with distribution and ball-control.”
With the improved effort in the loss, Fort White also welcomes the season's home stretch following the two-week holiday break.
“We have six games remaining after the break,” Angstadt said. “I know they could win at least four matches…What I would really like is to get past the first round of districts. I'm really excited about what we could do for the rest of the season.”
Columbia, which has just three games remaining, will return to the field on Jan. 11 for a home match against Santa Fe. Fort White’s break will end Jan. 8 at Baker County.