By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Expectations are always high with Springfield Catholic soccer, but the stakes feel even bigger this spring.
Through seven games, the Lady Irish have met their high bar.
Catholic continued its strong early season play with a solid 2-0 home win over Logan-Rogersville on Tuesday night.
Juniors Izzie Belz (13’) and Campbell Morgan (53’) netted the goals for Catholic.
“We’re hoping to make it to state this year,” said Belz, one of several multi-year varsity players on the Catholic squad. “We’re pushing every day at practice, conditioning and everything. We’re doing yoga. Anything to keep our bodies healthy.”
Catholic brought back 14 varsity players from last season’s district championship squad. This spring, the Lady Irish are seeking their first final four berth since 2017.
“This is one of the more mature and experienced teams we’ve had,” said Catholic coach Ben Timson. “This is a big year for us.”
Going against a strong north wind in the first half, Catholic scored when Belz capitalized on a ball in the box following a corner kick. Her shot hit the bottom part of the crossbar and bounced just inches past the goal line.
The play left Belz more confused than excited.
“Bella (Passanise) hit it first, and then I just kind of shot it toward the goal,” Belz said. “I didn’t think it went in, but then Peyton (Wiseman) said it went in, so I was like, ‘Okay, great!
“I thought it bounced out and they had saved it, so I was running back. Then everyone started high-fiving me.”
Said Timson: “At that time, with the wind like that, we were just kind of hoping to get to halftime and get (goals) in the second half. To get an early goal takes some of the edge off.”
Morgan added an insurance goal on a header as Catholic controlled the final 40 minutes with the wind at its back.
The Lady Irish, who are in Class 3 this season, were still riding high after Monday’s 2-1 road win at Class 4 Ozark.
Tuesday’s short turnaround provided a mental and physical challenge.
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“(Monday) night was a huge, emotional win for us,” Timson said. “We just ran people into the ground to get it. The girls were incredible. So, we knew we’d have some heavy legs today.
“It can be hard to get the players back up, emotionally, after a big win like that.”
Logan-Rogersville suffered its second straight shutout loss and fell to 4-2 overall.
The Lady Wildcats are using the early season to figure out a new lineup. They have a rising star in freshman and leading scorer Maddie Lou Shuburte.
“We’ve been working on a lot of stuff,” said Logan-Rogersville coach Brett Wubbena. “We have several kids who have not played a lot of soccer. So, we’re trying to get them to see space and all that. I thought we took a good step forward tonight. I was happy with the girls’ performance.”
Catholic, which has already played seven matches, can now rest after a busy 12-day stretch. The Lady Irish return to action on Tuesday, April 2 at home against Big 8 opponent Cassville.
Catholic’s lone loss came in double-overtime (1-0) at Nixa last week.
“I’m really pleased with the way we’ve played – so far,” Timson said. “Now we’ll have an Easter break coming up. And we really need it.”
Logan-Rogersville entered Tuesday’s match hoping to end a 15-game losing streak to Springfield Catholic. The Lady Wildcats’ next chance to end that streak won’t come in conference play.
Logan-Rogersville and Catholic will move to separate conferences next season. Logan-Rogersville will join the newly formed Ozark Mountain Conference, while Catholic heads to the existing Mid-Lakes Conference.
“We always strive to play well against Catholic,” Wubbena said. “We know they’re a great team and well-coached. We feel like we’re growing as a program. To do that, you must play some of the better teams around.”
The Lady Wildcats’ next game is April 4 at home versus Cassville.
