Sandy • Waterford’s quest for a seventh state championship in girls’ soccer got off to a roaring start Monday afternoon as the Ravens beat up on Beaver 6-0 in the Class 2A state quarterfinals.
Junior Samantha Morris and sophomore Johanna Bruce netted two goals apiece, senior Katherine Curtis scored her sixth goal of the season as a defender and junior forward Anna Wood scored her team leading 26th goal of the season as Waterford jumped all over the Beavers early and often in Monday’s playoff opener.
“Things just went our way today,” Waterford coach Tim Dolbin said. “We gave ourselves plenty of goal-scoring opportunities, and we kept pushing until late in the game.”
After a few golden opportunities were missed in the opening minutes, the Ravens eventually jumped on top in the fourth minute when Morris weaved her way through the Beaver penalty area and finished at the near post. Wood doubled her team’s lead in the 25th minute after scoring on a breakaway, then Curtis finished the first-half scoring with a shot right in front of the goal to give the Ravens a 3-0 halftime lead.
With her team already leading 4-0 midway through the second half, it was time for the smallest player on the field to show the strength of her leg as the diminutive Bruce launched a 25-yard bomb that dipped under the crossbar and into the far-post netting in the 59th minute for her 13th goal of the season.
“I don’t generally look for [shots from distance],” Bruce said. “Those were just the crosses that I got from my teammates that led to those chances.I was just looking for the top of the goal, over the goalie’s head. I guess it got there.”
Bruce added the Ravens’ finishing goal 10 minutes later with another curling shot that found the same spot in the same corner as her first.
“I just have the best teammates,” Bruce said. “They’re hard working, they give the best passes and they all have great shots. They led to all the goals we had today, and we just want to keep that up.”
Dolbin said his team must keep up that kind of scoring up if it wants to take down arch-rival Rowland Hall in the state title match.
“The nice thing about Saturday’s [final], if it is Rowland Hall, is that we know them so well that we don’t have to do anymore research,” Dolbin said. “We’ll see if we can get there on Saturday. Even though they’ll be the favorite, we’re going to give them a game.”
Beaver coach Lane Tucker said that the season was something his program could build on after dwelling in or near the basement of the classification for several years.
“This has been our best season in program history for us,” Tucker said. “I’ve got 11 graduating seniors, so there’s going to be some rebuilding and making up for us to do, but I see excelling things in the future.”
WATERFORD 6, BEAVER 0 <br>• Waterford earns its 11thshutout victory of the season as it upends Beaver to advance to the Class 2A state semifinals. <br>• The Ravens outshoot the Beavers 35-4, including a 20-2 shot on goal differential. <br>• Waterford advances to play 2A South champion Parowan in Friday’s state semifinals at Jordan High School.