Gilmour tops Lake in 1 vs. 2 showdown

Result could have impact on seeding in Division II postseason

Julia Pangonis scored a firsthalf goal to propel Gilmour past visiting Lake Catholic, 1-0, on a humid afternoon Sept. 25 in a battle of the Nos. 1 and 2 sides in The News-Herald girls soccer Top of the Crop.

Given the ramifications for Division II district seeding and, for now, area supremacy, it was a statement match of sorts for the Lancers (7-2-2).

“I have a feeling there’s a chance we might see them in the playoffs coming up,” Gilmour coach Joe Ciuni said. “That was in the back of my mind as well — it might happen again, it might be a rematch at some point. I think whoever was going to come out of this game had the inside shot at getting the 1 seed in the district, so I think it was important in that regard.”

The pivotal strike came in the 16th minute. The Lancers won a free kick on the left side of their offensive third. Alyssa Behrend delivered perfectly weighted service near post for Pangonis, who slotted a glancing header wide right.

It was part of a breakout performance for the freshman, who also had an outstanding match at central defender in a flat-back four.

“I just saw Alyssa on me, and she kicked the ball over,” Pangonis said. “The girl left me, and I just saw it wide open. I didn’t think I could get to it, but it skimmed right off my head and hit the corner of the net.

“It’s huge. We have been talking about Lake a lot. We really wanted to beat them, and then after the goal, we just wanted to keep our energy up. And then we did it. We’re really excited to beat them.”

The Cougars (8-1-1), coming off homecoming the night before, struggled with consistent attacking rhythm in the humidity, generating just two shots on target in the match.

Goalkeeper Kennedy Solymosi had two big saves in the opening 40 to keep her side within striking distance, including a nice lunging stop on reigning News-Herald girls soccer player of the year Izzy Greene on a left-footed effort in the 13th.

Lake nearly grabbed an equalizer in the 79th minute, when Brynn Morgan threaded a diagonal ball for Kati Druzina, but the standout junior attacker was stymied by Gilmour goalkeeper Kendra Barlow.

“Obviously they’re a good team, good coach — they knew what was going on,” Cougars coach Chris Hastings said. “We just didn’t come with any energy today. So if you’re playing a good side that’s organized and ready to play and fired up — they wanted to beat us more than we wanted to beat them.”

Coming soon

For more from this match, including a look at Gilmour’s new-look but still formidable back four, check back in the coming days on News-Herald.com and in our print edition.

JENNA MILLER — THE NEWS-HERALD Gilmour’s Izzy Greene and Lake Catholic’s Kennedy Newhart vie for possession during the Lancers’ victory on Sept. 25 at Gilmour.

JENNA MILLER — THE NEWS-HERALD Gilmour’s Kendra Barlow makes a save during the Lancers’ victory over Lake Catholic on Sept. 25 at Gilmour.