University girls soccer opens postseason with dominant 8-0 win over Musselman
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MORGANTOWN – The University High School girls soccer team opened the Class AAAA North Region Tournament in convincing fashion on Monday evening, rolling past Musselman 8-0 behind a two-goal performance from Lauren Goodenow and a balanced offensive attack on Baker's Ridge.
Goodenow helped set the tone early, scoring twice in the opening 12 minutes of the first half as the Hawks (18-3) quickly took control.
Siena Mayle assisted Goodenow's first goal at the 31:35 mark, with the sophomore capitalizing on a rebound after the Hawks strung together a series of passes down the right wing.
Less than two minutes later, Goodenow turned provider, assisting Brynn Ferry to make it 2-0. Goodenow then added her second goal of the night at 27:25, gathering the ball at the top of the box and firing a shot into the top corner off an assist from Braylee Armentrout.
University controlled possession throughout much of the opening half, repeatedly finding space down the right wing with Ava Gizzi. Musselman settled into the match as the half progressed, but the Hawks continued to limit the visitors' opportunities.
"I liked the performance from our girls tonight," UHS head coach Graham Peace said. "We have some things to work on before Thursday, but proud of the way the girls stepped up and the way they put their foot on the gas in the second half."
The Hawks showed no signs of slowing down after the break. Maddie Fritsch scored off a Gizzi assist to open the second half and Armentrout added another midway through the frame, finishing into the top corner after another well-placed pass from Gizzi.
Jules Gutta extended the lead to 6-0 before Callie Mayle found the back of the net off a Goodenow assist with 17:20 remaining. Chloe King capped the scoring with 40.5 seconds left to seal the eight-goal victory.
For University, the performance was an encouraging start to the postseason, particularly with its younger players contributing throughout the lineup.
The Hawks will now travel to Washington on Thursday to battle for a spot in next week’s Class AAAA state tournament in Beckley.
The Patriots are responsible for one of the Hawks’ three losses this season with a 2-1 victory on August 22.
"We've put ourselves in the position to have an opportunity to go to the state tournament," Peace said. "We haven't been there in nine years. It's right there in front of us. We have 80 minutes to give everything we have."