Girls soccer: Morgan holds off Ogden late, snaps Tigers’ unbeaten region streak
Lacie Poll delivers 2-0 lead for the Trojans; Tigers claw back short
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- Morgan sophomore Lilly Evans (10) clears the ball away from Ogden sophomore Seren Gee (17) during a home match vs. Ogden Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Morgan.
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- Ogden sophomore Seren Gee (17) steers away from Morgan sophomore Maria Wallace (2) during a road match Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Morgan.
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- Morgan sophomore Lilly Evans (10) throws in the ball during a home match vs. Ogden Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Morgan.
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- Ogden junior Kate Pulley gets her team in position during a road match Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Morgan.
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- Ogden sophomore Seren Gee (17) races around Morgan goalkeeper Skye Bernardo (27) during a road match Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Morgan.
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- The Morgan girls soccer team celebrates a goal during the first half of a home match vs. Ogden Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Morgan.
MORGAN — Kate Pulley sought every open look she could find during the final five minutes of Tuesday’s rivalry test with Morgan at Kephart Family Field.
Thirteen minutes earlier, Ogden’s team captain drilled home a free kick from about 60 feet away earlier to pull the Tigers within one goal of the Trojans.
But neither Pulley, nor a late look by Analycia Francisco, would stop Morgan from walking away with the much-needed, 3-2 region win and even the two teams at the top of Region 13.
Morgan (8-5, 5-1 Region 13) head coach Bryan Searle and his Trojans were upended by Ogden (7-7, 5-1) before, falling 2-1 on the road earlier this month. This time around, Searle circled Pulley’s number on each of his player’s scouting reports ahead of Tuesday’s match.
“You don’t see (Pulley) getting tired too often,” Searle said.
Morgan’s fifth consecutive victory improves its stake within the Region 13 conversation and hands Ogden its first loss since Aug. 22 at Fremont.
Lacie Poll delivered two unanswered goals — scoring her first on a footrace with Ogden’s Sofia Gray and her second goal on an assist from Kendall Peterson — 20 minutes into the first half. Reece Crowther found the net on a cross by Kapree Charlton 11 minutes later, bumping Morgan’s lead to three scores shortly before the break.
Ogden broke the spell with five minutes to go in the half when Seren Gee punched in a loose ball off the boot of teammate Megan Beau inside a busy box. Ogden first-year head coach Alexis King said the score was just what her group needed before halftime.
“We didn’t start the game off on the right foot,” King said. “Going into the second half, we did a better job of playing as a team, picking up the intensity (and) connecting the ball throughout the midfield to get opportunities to shoot on goal.”
Morgan tried striking back right away in the second half. A promising cross from Poll to Charlton fell short and Poll later missed a wide-open attempt as Ogden goalkeeper Grace Malan rushed toward Poll at the top of the box.
Ogden slowed down Morgan’s pace throughout the second half, a result of what King was looking for from her midfield: movement.
“We do very well when we have combination play,” King said. “We did that (better) in the second half and found more success playing our game how we usually play.”
After multiple missed looks by the Trojans’ attack, Ogden caught a huge break flagging down a free kick to the right of the goal. Pulley, scoring on the kick, placed a target on Morgan’s back in crunch time.
Morgan’s defense, save for second-half goalkeeper Maddie Fisher, stayed the same throughout the second half. Searle said this was intentional, with Morgan’s coach trusting in his girls’ gameday preparation.
“That’s a little too tight of a win,” Searle joked. “We didn’t (substitute) anyone during the second half but we did something we worked on from the first game. We watched the film and tried to contain (Pulley) the best you can.”
While Searle admitted the win helps Morgan’s short-term morale, he also made it clear the Trojans will need to begin putting away some of those second-half chances as the schedule winds down.
“I thought if we put a few more balls up and over, this game would’ve been a bit more direct,” Searle added. “We had several crosses, which opened up our middle and created some of our one-v-one’s with (Malan). … Just got to finish a few more so we don’t have to sweat to the last second of the game.”
Morgan welcomes in Union at 3:30 p.m. Thursday in hopes of a sixth-consecutive win. Looking to bounce back, Ogden hosts South Summit at 5:30 p.m. Thursday heading into its final four-game stretch.
Connect with prep sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net and X @ctbecker.
