OJR slowed by grass, tops Pottstown 1-0
POTTSTOWN — Owen J. Roberts is the greatest show on turf, yet on the luscious grass of Pottstown on Monday, the greatest show became the slowest show.
The Wildcats struggled on the grass pitch as the team racked up 25 penalty corners, 24 shots on target, yet Madison Schaeffer’s goal with two minutes remaining in the first half was the only thing to show for it as OJR grinded out a 1-0 victory.
“Our advantage today was our passing,’ OJR head coach Clarence Jennelle said. “The problem was we couldn’t finish because there were so many feet in the circle during our penalty corner opportunities. In grass, a lot of times your drives and your shots aren’t going to work, unless there’s a clean lane to it.
“Pottstown is a tenacious team. They will do the simple stuff probably better than almost any other team in the league.’
Pottstown freshman goalkeeper Ebony Reddick, cousin of 2013 Mercury All-Area second team goalkeeper Tyisha Reddick, shined the brightest for the Trojans, stopping 22 shots including a tremendous display of athleticism in denying back-to-back shots by Keeley White and Morgan Stone midway through the second half. The only blemish to her save percentage came when Schaeffer walked in a shot after a Sam Garritano blast was deflected at the middle of the circle on the ninth penalty corner try for OJR (4-1 PAC-10, 5-3 overall).
The Trojans offense, however, couldn’t muster the same display as the team was stifled by consistent OJR pressure and point-to-point passing, finishing the game with zero shots and zero corners as they only controlled the ball past the 50 four times.
“We didn’t play our best game but we held our ground,’ Pottstown head coach Brandy Scherer said. “We had pretty OK defense and an awesome goalie in the cage that kept it close.’
Reddick was dynamic in the second half as she sprawled out and made a diving blocker save on a White blast from the top of the circle before regaining her footing and kicking away a Stone attempt at the far post. She capped off her effort with a diving stick safe off a Courtney Gerber shot, and despite the loss, was eager to become a mainstay goalkeeper similar to Tyisha last season.
“I came onto the team to play on the field but I had to step up and be a goalie,’ Reddick said. “I ended up being good at it. I just want to have a better record than we had last year and have as many saves as I can.’
Pottstown (2-3 PAC-10, 2-5) has already doubled its conference win total from last season and will travel to Perkiomen Valley on Wednesday. OJR will host Pope John Paul II tomorrow at 7 p.m.
