The Atlee girls’ soccer team roared out of a scoreless first half deadlock Friday evening at Lee-Davis, notching two quick goals and going on to defeat the host Confederates in Capital District play 4-0.

  As has become their trademark this season, Atlee was largely ineffective on offense throughout the first half of the contest.

  “The first half, it’s just we played real direct,” said Raiders’ head coach Bruce Lovelace but pointed out that in this particular game, the Lee-Davis defense had a lot to do with Atlee’s inability to score. “They did a nice job first half defensively against us.”

  Nearly the entirety of the first half was played with Atlee battling inside Lee-Davis territory but the Confederates and keeper Janie Evans (four saves) kept the Raiders out of the goal.

  The weather may have also played a role in the offensively ineffective first half for both teams. With temperatures in the upper seventies, the game was played under more heat than either team was used to seeing. “Both teams were a little flat,” Lovelace said. “I think both teams, with the heat and not being used to it, kind of slowed things down a little bit. Both teams really didn’t come out as intense as they should have.”

  According to Atlee senior Lindsey Booth, the team is still looking for answers as to why they start off slow. “I don’t really know what happens in the first half,” she said. “We’re just really not in the game. Then something happens in the second half, like a spark comes in us.”

  That Atlee spark ignited a wildfire in the second half from senior’s Jordan Roseboro and Booth. “We practice together every day so get the hang of what each of us is going to do,” Booth said. “We just work really well together.”
  “Both are Division I players next year,” Lovelace said. “They both stepped up and showed the quality of their play.”

  Twenty-two seconds into the second period, Roseboro swept in from the left and as Evans came out from the goal to defend, Roseboro drilled a shot past the keeper for a 1-0 Atlee lead.

  The Raider score appeared to have a demoralizing effect on the Confederates. “That took a lot of wind out of our sails,” said Lee-Davis head coach Brad Dalton. “The blue print was just like the first game; 0-0 at half time. We played well enough to make it 0-0. They come out and score quickly into the second half and it just kind of put us back on our heels. We just got out of rhythm for lack of a better term.”

  Atlee pressed their advantage and five minutes later Roseboro struck again for an identical score and a 2-0 Raiders’ lead.

  Only four more minutes passed before it was Booth’s turn, punching the ball out of a crowd at the right upright to score.

  Lee-Davis was further hampered by injury when Nicole Kirkwood left the game. “Even though she’s a freshman, she’s played well in the middle for us,” Dalton said. “That just kind of threw us for a loop because she was one of the ones that was being aggressive to the ball. Once we lost that aggressiveness we became a much more reactive team instead of trying to make things happen.”

  But the solid Atlee defense also played a role in the Confederates’ inability to score, especially with Ann O’Toole, Marie Dunlap and Megan Stuck. “All of them are solid in the back,” Lovelace said. “Because of that we used fewer backs than normal because they’re so effective back there. They’ve been solid back there all year. Just a super job.”

  Then in the 68th minute of play, Atlee’s Booth went on the attack from the middle. When Evans came out to defend, Booth nailed a shot past the defense for a 4-0 Raiders’ lead.

  While happy with the win that kept them undefeated in district play, Lovelace said his squad has plenty to work on. “It’s got to get better than it was tonight,” he said. “The speed of play. We’re taking too long to do things. We need to do better work on set pieces.”

  With freshmen and sophomore comprising a majority of the Lee-Davis squad, Dalton said his team’s greatest stumbling block has not been physical but mental. “We really didn’t play the way we’re capable of and right now, honestly, it’s all a mental thing,” he said. “I don’t think there’s anybody on this team that’s ever beaten Atlee and it’s just one of those things, until we get a win against them we’re going to have nights like this.”

Atlee ...........................................0 4 — 4
Lee-Davis…................................0 0 — 0
A: Booth 2, Roseboro 2
Saves: Hoy (A) 3; Evans (LD) 7
Records: Atlee 6-0-1 Capital, 7-0-2; Lee-Davis 2-3, 4-5