Lady Cougars Win District Championship
Congratulations to the Lady Cougar soccer team on winning the District Championship! They had three big wins over District opponents and strolled their way to the Championship. On Monday, they traveled to Frisco Legacy, and found themselves with a little adversity early. After an opening goal from Elle Durham, two quick goals from Legacy put the Lady Cougars in their first hole of the season. Grace was able to fight their way back to even before halftime. Rylee Ratliff scored on a clever pass from Addison Eli. In the second half, the Lady Cougars firmly established themselves as the better side, scoring three goals while allowing Legacy no shots. The final score was 5-2; second-half goals were courtesy of Rylee Ratliff, Addison Eli, and Cesa Sabillon.
The Lady Cougars played 2nd place Coram Deo back-to-back on Thursday and Friday, knowing that a couple of wins were secure them the District title. Thursday night’s game was Senior Night at Clyde-Perkins stadium. Seniors Meg Cowart, Lauren Etheredge, Abby Metzger, Mary Grace Murphy, Rylee Ratliff and Audrey Trump sent themselves off in style with a strong performance and a 2-0 win against the Lady Lions. Scoring for the Lady Cougars were Elle Durham and Paige Britt.
This set the stage for a winner-take-all game against Coram Deo on Friday. The Lady Cougars were very much up to the task, starting strong in the wind and cold in Dallas. Elle Durham opened the scoring for the Lady Cougars on a pass from Cesa Sabillon, and the 1-0 score held to halftime. Coram Deo worked incredibly hard and kept the score tight through much of the second half, and found a way to create some scary moments for the Grace defense. Hard pressing by Abby Metzger, Keely Bozeman, Julia Feliciano, Bela Sabillon, and Maggie Gillen made things difficult—and Claire Stoermer came up huge in the goal with some beautiful saves to keep the score at 1-0. Grace kept up the pressure on offense, and the cracks began to show in the Lady Lions defense. Addison Eli added the second goal, and Elle Durham scored the third goal that broke Coram Deo’s back. Rylee Ratliff added two goals of her own to bring the final score to 5-0.
The Lady Cougars have amassed a record of 23-2-1, while scoring 104 goals and only allowing 13! They have one more District game at home against Bishop Dunne before they set their sights on the playoffs. Grace will host a home playoff game around February 21st. Thank you for your support throughout the season, and we would love to see you at our next home games!