Forest Park beats Woodbridge in girls soccer

The playoff fortunes of the Forest Park Lady Bruins soccer team may depend on how well the Bruins do the rest of the way in games similar to the one they played against Woodbridge Tuesday night.

Despite a fierce challenge from a tenacious Woodbridge back line, the Bruins quickness on offense could not be slowed as it peppered Woodbridge goalkeeper Meagan Glover with shots throughout en route to a 3-1 Cardinal District victory on Breast Cancer Awareness Night at Forest Park.

The quickness and precision of the Bruins’ front line was evident as Forest Park took a 2-0 lead in the first five minutes of the game, putting Woodbridge on its heels early. Sophomore forward Vanessa Kovar, speeding in from the left side of the goal box, took advantage of a rare defensive breakdown by Woodbridge, and tucked a pass from Madison Black into the right corner of the net in the fifth minute to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead.   

Before the noise had died down from the excited fans, Forest Park scored again, this time when Autumn Berry  rifled a cross to a charging Annah Lindberg on the left side that gave the Bruins a 2-0 lead. From that point through the remainder of the first half, Woodbridge appeared deflated.

Kovar said scoring the first goal was “huge.”

“Our coach [David Cresswell] told us before the game that scoring the first goal was important because it would allow us to relax and get our composure,” Kovar said. “We were able to dictate the pace after that and I think we showed what kind of a team we can be. We went to the state quarterfinals last year and it was a tough loss, but this year we have our eyes set on [possibly making] the state finals.”

Considering that Forest Park had only yielded a total of three goals all season entering play on Tuesday, Woodbridge (7-3-2 overall, 6-2-1 in district play) faced a tall order to come back from the early deficit.

“We were not winning the ball out of the air early and you can’t do that against a team like Forest Park,” Woodbridge coach Scott Kerns said. “We were back on our heels with them scoring that quick. They were able to dictate the tempo. They came out aggressive [in the first half], so I told them [his players] at halftime that we had to come out and score early and we did.”

Woodbridge scored in the 46^th minute when Kailyn Slade took advantage of a “scrum” in front of the goal after a corner kick by Kellsey Costello-Mays. The ball bounced twice and just as Forest Park goalkeeper Emma Kruse came out to try to grab it, Slade pounded it in from the right side, just after two other players tried to nudge it past Kruse, pulling Woodbridge within 2-1.

“We were encouraged by [our play in] the second half, especially because we haven’t always played so well lately,” Kerns said. “We got a great chance there by Kailyn, but missed a great scoring chance at the end [when Costello-Mays was stopped by Kruse in the final seconds]. We had to have the last pass and we didn’t get it often.”

The Bruins took a 3-1 lead in the 63^rd minute when Melissa Fessenden found Lindberg just outside the goal box and Lindberg blasted it past Glover for her second goal.

“Give them [Woodbridge] credit,” Cresswell said. “They expended a lot of energy to get back into it at 2-1 and we were able to use that to our advantage late in the second half because they [the Woodbridge players] were spent. We had 4, 5, and6  passes [on possessions] through most of the game and when you have that many passes, good things are going to happen,” Cresswell said. “It gives you confidence. We hope we are a playoff team, so [this Thursday’s] game against Hylton is huge. This is the second half of our season and we are playing with playoff intensity.”

That intensity showed in the speed and ball movement Forest Park possessed throughout most of the first half in outshooting the Vikings, 11-5. Kovar said it was that intensity that enabled the Bruins to gain confidence that built throughout the game.

“Once we got the early goals, we could begin pressuring them more,” Kovar said. “I think playing for a charity [breast cancer] caused all of us to be more inspired.We played faster and moved the ball better. I think we showed what kind of a team we [are capable of] being. We are definitely shooting for that [a long playoff run],” Kovar said.

The proceeds Forest Park gained from the game were scheduled to be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Cresswell said. The Bruins’ players wore pink game-shirts, while coaches for both teams wore pink shirts to raise awareness. Fans who donated money were also permitted to take penalty shots against Cresswell at halftime. Kerns said raising money for charity took advantage of the already increased interest in the game due to the nature of the rivalry between the two schools.

“We did this last year as well,” Kerns said. “When I approached Dave [Cresswell] about it, he was very cooperative. We [do this when Forest Park and Woodbridge play because we] want more people in the stands because that allows us to raise more money [for the charity]. I hope this is something we can do every year.”

Kerns also noted that when the teams play at Woodbridge next Wednesday night all funds will be donated for autism awareness and research. Cresswell said that cause is dear to his heart.
“I have two sons with Asperger’s Syndrome, so it [raising money for autism] is obviously very important to me,” Cresswell said. “We will donate a lot of money from tonight and that’s great. But I really hope Woodbridge can raise awareness about autism. Playing for charity can be a distraction, but I told the team to focus like it was a playoff game and they did.”