With the 2012 Girls’ Soccer season winding down, the Lady Truckers hosted conference rival Ripon Tuesday, May 22, and came away with their first conference victory.
The Truckers’ season has been dramatically affected by serious injuries. Fortunately, goalie Sarah Tourville’s broken finger has improved enough to allow the sophomore to return to her normal position.
With Tourville back in goal, Senior Forward Paige Lehman returned to the front line and Clintonville’s ball movement immediately improved.
With only four minutes played in the first half, sophomore Lynnea Johnson moved down the right side and scored her first varsity goal. The 1-0 score held up through the half.
The Trucker defense played its most aggressive game of the season. Led by seniors Hattie Rhode, Kelsey (Mouse) Raasch, and Kayla Van Asten, the Truckers were rarely in trouble.
The Truckers extended their lead at the 16 minute mark of the second period when Johnson found Lehman in front of the Tiger net, and the score moved to 2-0.
The visitors mounted one strong scoring drive in the second half, but their shot on goal was denied when ‘Mouse’ Raasch made a brilliant block of a sure tally. With 1:26 left in the contest, forward Rachel Wisneski scored her third goal of the season as the Truckers won 3-0.
“After all of the concussions and knee issues this team has experienced this year, it was great to see the team play its most complete game of the season,” said Coach Roger Lupien. “With tonight being Seniors’ Night, I was impressed with the contributions from all four of our seniors. Our defense was as good as it has been all year and the younger players on offense are getting more comfortable in their roles. We have a couple of games left before the state tournament, and I’d like to see our teamwork and hustle stay at this level.”