Dixie forward Aubri Challis shoot for the Stansbury goal Saturday, Oct. 18, 2014.
Dixie forward Lizzy Durrant works through Stansbury defenders Saturday, Oct. 18, 2014.
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Loading...The Stansbury Stallions’ season came to an end Saturday in the quarterfinals of the Girls 3A State Soccer Tournament with a 3-0 loss to the Dixie Flyers.
The Stallions threatened to score in a few spots, but Dixie goalkeeper Taylor Whitson stood tall for the shutout.
“We’re progressing,” Stansbury coach Jeremy Alverson said. “I’m disappointed for the loss, but Dixie is a great team, the defending state champions. Hopefully the girls will take it and see what it takes to be one of those teams.”
The Flyers struck for two goals in the first half — one in the 14th minute and one in the 30th minute. Until that first goal, Stansbury junior goalkeeper Natalie Memmott kept the Flyers off the board with two stops in the first two minutes.
Dixie forward Starlee Woodbury sprinted into the penalty area on a leading pass in the first minute. She had a wide-open shooting chance, but Memmott came out and corralled the ball to stop Woodbury’s forward momentum.
Memmott then provided just enough of a threat in goal the next minute on another scoring chance for the Flyers. Dixie’s Sabra Sparks hauled in a cross from the left and set to shoot. She aimed it off-target for a miss.
With the scoreboard still empty, Stansbury had a chance to take the lead during the seventh minute. Senior forward Rachel Prescott put a shot on goal that Whitson stopped for Dixie to keep the game knotted scoreless.
In the 10th minute, the Flyers’ Alexa Estridge took a shot directly on goal on a cross, but Memmott snagged it for a save at the center of the goal line. The Flyers finally broke down the Stallions’ defense four minutes later for the opening goal.
Stansbury senior midfielder Lexi Golden had a scoring chance 14 minutes into the second half. She lined up for a free kick from about 25 yards out and aimed top shelf. However, Whitson reached and grabbed it for the save. Memmott’s next big save came in the 61st minute on a shot by Dixie’s Elizabeth Durrant.
The Flyers, however, scored one last goal to wrap up the scoring and advance to the state semifinals.
Estridge complimented the Stallions on a great game and said they presented plenty of problems.
“They’re a tough, physical team,” Estridge said. “We had to step up our game because they didn’t make it easy on us.”
Alverson said he’s happy with the Stallions’ efforts and sees the confidence in the program growing each year.
“We were able to play with the defending champs,” Alverson said. “Obviously playing on turf was a challenge, but Dixie earned the right to have home field. So we’ve got to be there. We need to work for getting home field.”
