Wimberley High School Lady Texan Soccer (9-0-1 overall) hosted their first district game last week against Canyon Lake High School (6-4).
Coach Eric Nichols’ squad took the previous week to rest and reset for district and prepare for the early season match.
“We came out with a really strong start where we’ve been tentative recently,” shared Nichols. “Canyon Lake brings high pressure and a physicality to the pitch. We got our combinations going early with two or three touches rather than holding onto the ball. That’s when we’re showing success.”
The crisp passing paid off with four goals scored in the first half with the defense holding the Hawks scoreless. Lilli Sandoval netted two goals while Izzy Franchione and Emily Thames scored one each.
Canyon Lake amped up their intensity in the second half, pushing the ball into the Lady Texan zone often. The Hawks were able to push in their only goal for the night with 1:30 left in the contest.
“We slowed down a bit with the lead and didn’t maintain our energy to match theirs in the second. It’s not difficult to do when you’re up by four but it’s something to work on,” said Nichols. “The girls were disappointed in giving up the late goal which is the competitor coming out, which is what you want to see. We’re taking little steps forward but we’re getting where we want to be. The outlook gets more positive with each game.”
The Lady Texans rescheduled their Fredericksburg High School match on Tuesday, Jan. 31 to Thursday, Feb. 2 (weather permitting) before returning home to play the Davenport High School Wolves on Friday at 6 p.m. Next Tuesday, the ladies travel to Bandera High School to continue district play versus the Bulldogs.
Friday, Jan. 27 also marked the beginning of district play for Texan Soccer (6-2-1) as the young men headed across Devil’s Backbone for a match with the Hawks (3-5) at Canyon Lake High School. Coach Ramez Antoun’s team continues to show progress while rebuilding their defensive line.
“We came out on fire,” exclaimed Antoun. “We were up with two goals in the first five minutes. Canyon Lake began figuring out what we wanted to do at that point and slowed things down. We did good on the defensive end but need to clean up some mistakes costing us in free kicks.”
Canyon Lake scored on a penalty kick to draw the game to 2-1 before the Texans scored again to make the score 3-1.
Still in the first half, the Hawks drew to within one with a corner kick double-headed into the front corner of the net. Wimberley stormed back to put up another score to lead by two before halftime. The final score was 4-2 as neither team Gage Weaver accounted for three Texan goals and Gage Tumlinson recorded a goal and an assist. Bryce Phillips (2) and Nick Dunn (1) tallied three assists for the team.
Antoun commented on the Texans’ effort and team play.
“We’re getting better. We handled our business and won the game but found room for improvement. We left some goals out there and with Fredericksburg and Davenport this week and Boerne [High School] coming up, we’ve got to do a better job of competing for position.”
The Texans’ home game on Tuesday with Fredericksburg was also rescheduled to Thursday (weather permitting), and they plan to head to San Antonio for a match against Davenport High School on Friday, Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. They are back home at Texan Stadium Tuesday, Feb. 7 to play Bandera at 7 p.m.
