We're live at MacDonald Stadium as the Avery Lady Vikings look to keep their storybook season alive as they square off against the North Moore Lady Mustangs. Avery enters this evening's matchup ranked #2 in the state this week, while the Lady Mustangs come in ranked #4. Should be an exciting and highly competitive matchup, with a berth in the 1A soccer final four on the line.We will be bringing updates throughout the match as the Big Red look to advance. Go Big Red!
Update #1 (6:25 PM) : The match has been defensive thus far with no score. Both Mary Chesnut Smith and Emily Banner have taken shots on goal. Avery received a corner at the 20-minute mark but could not convert. Midway through the first half and the match is scoreless.
Update #2 (6:28 PM): GOAL AVERY! Mary Chesnut Smith gets the ball on the front line, maneuvers by a pair of North Moore defenders, and rifles a shot past the left side of the keeper. Avery leads 1-0 in the 22nd minute!Update #3 (6:32 PM) GOAL AVERY! Off an assist from Cassie Bumgarner, Elyse Perry finds the ball at the front of the net and blisters a shot that finds the back of the net! Avery leads North Moore 2-0 in the 26th minute.
Update #4 (6:42 PM) GOAL AVERY! A pair of North Moore players collide, and Emily Banner and the Lady Vikings take care of business. Emily dribbles into the penalty box and slips a shot that just trickles across the goal line for a third goal in the half. In the 34th minute the Big Red holds a 3-0 lead!
Update #5: Avery leads 3-0 at halftime. The Lady Vikings have dominated the first half, limiting North Moore to very few shots on goal, while the Avery offense has kept the pressure consistently on the Mustangs.
Second half coming up!
Update #6: An extended break in action due to a North Moore injured player, but back to action with 30 minutes left to play and Avery leading by three goals.
Update #7 (7:33 PM): Counting down to ten minutes left to play in regulation and Avery still holds a decisive 3-0 lead.
Update #8 (7:45 PM): THE AVERY LADY VIKINGS DEFEAT NORTH MOORE 3-0 AT MACDONALD STADIUM. Goals from Smith, Banner, and Perry lead the way as Avery advances to the semifinals of the NCHSAA 1A girls soccer state tournament. They will either host Lake Norman Charter or will travel to play Bishop McGuinness, depending on the winner of that quarterfinal match also held this evening. We will post information as soon as we get details regarding an opponent.
Update #9: (8:25 PM) Lake Norman Charter defeated Bishop McGuinness by a 1-0 final score in the other half of Avery's bracket. Lake Norman is not conference-affiliated, so there is a good possibility that the Lady Vikings may be HOSTING A STATE SEMIFINAL MATCH on SATURDAY AFTERNOON. We'll keep you posted when a definitive venue is finalized (likely sometime early Thursday).
