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Friday night at Centennial Field the Bainbridge Lady Cats soccer team(1-1, 0-0) kicked off the night with an early barrage of goals on their way to a 9-0 win over the Cook County Hornets. It was a rather impressive performance following a tough 4-3 defeat last Tuesday in their opener against Colquitt County.

The Lady Cats netted two goals within the first four minutes of the match and coasted to victory from that point onwards, holding a 6-0 advantage after the first 40 minutes.

Senior Addison Hill accomplished a significant milestone right before the end of the first half by scoring her 100th and 101st career goal, becoming the first Bainbridge soccer athlete to score triple-digit goals in the Bainbridge soccer program history.

“I’m simply proud of the way she plays the game, she’s a leader,” Bainbridge boys and girls soccer coach Brian Hill said. “She practices hard, and plays hard, obviously the goals are nice too, but I’m certainly proud of the other things.”

This Lady Cats soccer team carries a chip on their shoulders following such a successful regular season (14-1-1, 8-0) and an early exit falling in the first round of the State playoffs last season, an eye-popping 10-player(s) return from last season’s team and showcased their offensive firepower against the Hornets, Friday night.

No. 3 Hill led the Lady Cats with seven points on the evening, finding the back of the net an outstanding five goals (103 overall), well showing off her vision and precision with two assists to move her total through two matches to 12 points. No. 6 Alicia Sarmiento delivered two strikes to the back of the net and added an assist for a total of five points through two matches. No. 15 Emma Shirley and No. 16 Angelina Bautista secured one-goal-a-piece, Shirley’s second goal of the bright season, and Bautista’s first of her varsity tenure. No. 5 Maria Torilla-Mendoza, Sarmiento, No. 7 Abigail Holley, and Shirley all had an assist in the landslide victory. Senior goaltender No. 0 Emma Watson secured her first shutout of the season.

“It’s nice to get a win with the effort and commitment that the seniors have put in,” Brian Hill said.

Following the Lady Cats thrashing of the Hornets, the Bearcats (1-1, 0-0) themselves got out to a quick start netting the first two goals within four minutes on the pitch against Cook County on the way to their first victory of the season, 5-3. A late Hornet goal made the score look closer than how the match played out, as the Bearcats held a 5-2 advantage for 30:00 minutes in the second half.

However, before the break, the Bearcats conceded an own goal (a goal scored inadvertently when the ball was struck into the goal by a player on the defensive team) with 7:58 remaining in the first half. They swiftly responded with a goal of their own, re-establishing a secure two-goal lead going into halftime. This could have influenced the tactical approach of the game, but Coach Hill’s squad remained proactive and continued to press for goals in the second half.

“We gave up an own goal. It was one of those instances where it just slipped through our goalies’ hands,” Hill said. “It was nice to get that extra goal right before the half. We’re still working on the fundamentals, getting better passing, making runs, playing good defense.”

No. 9 Eduardo Miranda produced a hat-trick, No. 1 freshman, Santino Gallo and No. 10 Jose Bonilla-Ortiz each scored one goal each. Junior No. 13 Angel Bonilla-Ortiz and Gallo had two assists each in the five goal display.

The Lady Cats and Bearcats are set for an exciting weekday road trip early in the season, first headed to Valwood on Tuesday and then making their way to Dothan this Friday, before returning home for their non-region match against Providence Christian on February 25. The Lady Cats will start at 5:30 p.m. followed by the Bearcats taking the pitch at 7:30 p.m.

“We’re simply trying to get a little bit better every day, whether it be in practice or in-game,” Hill said. “By the time we get to the end of the season, we want to be playing our best soccer.”