MORGAN COUNTY
Morgan County girls soccer split two games with non-region opponents last week to end its 2023 season. The Lady ‘Dogs faced two Class AAAAA teams in Clarke Central and Ola at Bill Corry Stadium.
Morgan County dominated the Lady Gladiators 3-0 on Tuesday to remain undefeated. However, the Lady Dogs’ first loss came to the Lady Mustangs 1-0 in the regular season finale this past Thursday.
Morgan County head coach Anne Stamps said earlier this season those two games will only help her team.
“Those games will help us see where we are at going into the playoffs,” she said. “They’ll be a measuring stick.”
Junior midfielder Rylee Bernard netted two goals in Morgan County’s non-region win over Clarke Central. The junior Lady Dog midfielder was aggressive and made clutch shots when it mattered.
At the half, Morgan County led the Lady Gladiators 1-0 after a defensive battle. However, in the second the Lady Dogs broke open the game as Bernard scored on a free kick from way outside the box.
On the other end of the pitch, Morgan County junior goalie McKinsey Williams made a few saves for her team. Senior Daphne Lopez also played stout defense as did sophomore Jaden Young.
Young added the Lady Dogs’ final goal with under 15 minutes left. She dribbled the ball down the field going up against a defender, but was able to shake her and fire a shot into the back of the net.
Region 4-AAA champion Morgan County (14-1-1, 10-0) then wrapped up the 2023 regular season against Ola on Thursday; however, the Lady Mustangs (8-4-2, 4-2) upset the Lady Dogs.
Ola was able to net the game’s only goal in the second half and managed to play sound defense to hand Morgan County its first loss of the year. The Lady Mustangs limited the Lady Dogs in all facets.
Despite the loss, Morgan County is playing some of its best soccer heading into the postseason.
Stamps told the Lake Oconee News in March that her team is “communicating” at an all-time high.
“Last year, we talked a lot about communication. And this year, we’re continuing that focus,” she said. “The girls have bought in and it’s clicking. They’re enjoying communicating on the field and are seeing the fruits of that labor right now. They see when we have breakdowns on the field, it seems to revolve around not communicating enough. So, we have been preaching that they need to communicate at all times during games, and it’s been working. I am excited to see how it all plays out.”
Per Scorbord.com, Morgan County is ranked No. 2 overall in Class AAA. The Lady Dogs enter the Class AAA state playoffs as a No. 1 seed and will face the No. 4 seed from Region 3 next week.
Morgan County will host at least one home game in the first round on Tuesday, April 11. If the Lady Dogs are able to win their first-round matchup, they will host another game on Monday, April 17.