THE GLOBE
MANKATO -- Something exciting, and always celebrated, happened in the Worthington Trojans’ girls soccer season opener Thursday at Mankato Loyola High School.
The Trojans, who scored only two goals all of last season, scored in the first half of their game with the Crusaders. It was a double-shot by sophomore Aeril Reveles, whose first attempt bounced off the Loyola goalkeeper moments before Reveles kicked it into the net for keeps.
“We’re already halfway to our goals for last season,” gushed WHS head coach Emily Ahlquist.
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The second half of the game didn’t go nearly as well for the Trojans. Loyola, taking a 2-1 lead into halftime, outscored the visitors 8-0 in the second half.
“We came out strong in the first half, connecting passes, moving downfield. I’d say we controlled the game at least 50 percent of the time,” Ahlquist said. “The second half, we just got really tired. And we don’t have a lot of depth to our bench yet.”
Consistently beating Worthington to the ball, Mankato scored its last six goals in the last 15 minutes of the contest.
Admitting the second half was a disappointment, Ahlquist nevertheless said she expects more complete performances when her girls get into midseason form. Until then, the one early goal is a hopeful sign.
“One of our goals is that we want to score in at least half of our games this year,” said Ahlquist.
So far, it’s one for one.
Worthington 1 0 -- 1Mankato Loyola 2 8 -- 10
