Lake Oconee Academy girls’ soccer continues its run at history, advancing to the Class A Division II playoff semifinal for a second straight year after beating Wheeler County on Monday night.
The Lady Titans topped the Lady Bulldogs 6-1 behind a strong team effort in front a large home crowd.
“We’re happy to be advancing to the Final Four,” LOA head coach Kourtney Kelley said. “It’s definitely awesome to get back there.”
The Lady Titans made a run to the semifinals last season but lost to region rival Towns County.
“We went out in the final four last season, so we told the girls to remember that feeling,” Kelley said. “I think it really helps you down the stretch to know what it feels like to lose a game like that.”
This year’s squad is looking to be the first girls’ team in LOA history to make it to the state championship. Kelley emphasized that her girls need to play better if they want to make that a reality.
“That game (on Monday) was one of the worst we’ve played in a while,” Kelley said. “The girls understand that if we play like that the rest of the way, we’ll be packing our bags and coming home.”
Kelley added that they were fortunate to get the win against Wheeler and have the opportunity to fix their mistakes in the semifinal. She’s looking forward to seeing who steps up in the next round.
Lake Oconee Academy’s Jane Monachello played a big role in the Lady Titans’ win over the Lady Bulldogs. The senior forward notched three goals, including a header in the second half.
“We were able to get up early and wear (Wheeler County) down,” Kelley said. “Our speed, subs, and passing made a huge difference in this game. We were able to score quickly in the second half, and I think that put them down in the dumps. We were able to take advantage of that.”
Lake Oconee Academy (9-5-2) will now shift its focus toward Atlanta Classical Academy (7-5-2).
“We’ve played Atlanta Classical Academy the last three years in the playoffs,” Kelley said. “We always seem to run into them.”
Last season, the Lady Titans won 2-1, while ACA got the best of them in 2022, winning 8-0. They’ll return to the pitch on Thursday to see who will make it to the state title game next week in Macon.
The winner of the LOA-ACA matchup will face Towns County or Aquinas, two teams from the Lady Titans’ region. They’ve defeated both earlier this year and hope to beat one of them again next week.