Methacton makes quick work of Norristown
WEST NORRITON >> Methacton scored six goals in the first 13 minutes against Norristown Monday afternoon on a grass field at Norristown Area High School.
The Warriors added another goal in the first half and three more in the second in a 10-0 Pioneer Athletic Conference Liberty Division win.
Alexa Kratz scored three goals, Grace Hirst and Olivia Hoover each scored two and Frankie Lucchesi, Mackenzie Henry and Emily Owens each had one.
A majority of the game was played deep in Norristown’s end and the Eagles didn’t get their first shot until the final five minutes of the game.
Methacton (4-0, 2-0) had 21 corners to Norristown’s (0-4, 0-2) one.
“We were able to get a lot of players into the game today and move them into different positions,” Methacton coach Sarah Quintois said. “So it was good to try different combinations of players together in different positions.”
The biggest bright spot for the Eagles was sophomore goaltender Basimah Curry. Curry, a player who greatly improved her mobility since her freshman year, made 29 saves.
“There are things we have to work on,” Norristown coach Rachel Schuster said. “It’s tough when we’re going from turf to grass. We had two practices last week and we played mostly on turf. Once we get back on grass, it’s almost like it takes us two steps back before we come back because we’re back on the grass. There’s definitely things we have to work on.”
Big week
Methacton has league games against Boyertown, Owen J. Roberts and Perkiomen Valley coming up this week. OJR entered Monday 2-0 in PAC play, Boyertown 1-0 and Perk Valley 0-2.
“(Tuesday) we play Boyertown at Boyertown,” Quintois said. “That’s always challenging. They’re always strong on their grass field, especially. Wednesday we play Owen J. Roberts and they’re a strong, skilled team — we have them at home. Friday we play Perk Valley at home. They’re all strong within our division.
“It’s a tough week. Going two grass games then two turf — it makes it more challenging, but so far the girls have been adjusting to things happening and different surfaces we’ve been on for different reasons. Hopefully we’ll be able to adjust and deal with the changes.”
Freshman phenom
Kratz scored three goals for the Warriors against Norristown Monday — the first, sixth and last goals.
The freshman has been making a big impact early on this season.
“She’s a very strong, skilled player who’s working on her confidence,” Quintois said. “Hopefully this (game against Norristown) will give her a little bit of a confidence boost. She definitely is a very strong and skilled player.
“She’s been starting and she’s been getting a lot of playing time. She’s having a good year so far.”
High expectations
Last season the Warriors reached the PAC semifinals and third round of districts.
This year they returned three first-team all-league players in Hoover, Owens and Julia Dickinson. Dickinson, however, broke her foot in the preseason during a scrimmage and most likely will not return this year.
Methacton still has high hopes for the season, but had to make some changes.
“It’s given opportunities to people like Alexa who would have been more like a role player but would have gotten a lot of time,” Quintois said. “We do really miss (Dickinson) and we’ve had to change the lineup a lot because of that.”
Improving every day
Monday’s loss dropped Norristown’s record to 0-4 this season. More than half of the team’s 17-girl roster are freshman.
Schuster’s goal is to get a little bit better every day this season.
“It’s just kind of learning positions and the game,” she said.
“We want to move the ball down and know where we need to be so that we can actually get it up the field. We’re working on positions more — getting around people.”
Methacton 10, Norristown 0
Methacton 7 3 — 10
Norristown 0 0 — 0
Scoring: M: Alexa Kratz 3 goals, Grace Hirst 2 goals 2 assists, Olivia Hoover 2 goals 1 assist, Frankie Lucchesi 1 goal 1 assist, Mackenzie Henry 1 goal 1 assist, Emily Owens 1 goal, Rosa Coppa 1 assist, Liz Chipman 1 assist
Saves: M: Sarah Woolston 3. N: Basimah Curry 29.
