The Wamac conference race continues one battle after another.
Center Point Urbana's Emily Bowe, 13, split two defenders in a Class 1A regional girls soccer game against Cedar Valley Christian last season. Bowe has moved to a new position on the field, where she is more focused on assists than goals. (Jeff Stelfox/The Gazette)
SOLON — The girls soccer team, ranked No. 9 in Class 1A, earned a hard-fought victory on the road against a tough Wamac Conference opponent.
Center Point Urbana coach Kevin Schmidt was hoping wins like this would be beneficial as the season progresses.
Last week, regulation alone wasn't enough to determine a winner. There were no two overtimes and no five penalty kicks.
Finally, on penalty kick No. 6, CPU goaltender Emerson Fleming blocked Solon's shot and Adi Tupa scored the go-ahead goal at Spartan Stadium.
“As soon as I felt the ball hit my hand, I was happy,” Fleming said. “I was nervous, but I knew what I had to do.”
“I tried to be as confident as possible, and I knew the team had confidence in me, so I went in with the mindset that I could do it,” Tupa said. “I imagined going in and just stepped up. It was a very strong kick.”
This is Wammack's life these days.
“Wamack has definitely upped its atmosphere and produced a good team that is very competitive. It's only going to get better every year,” Schmidt said. “So, we want the team to be involved and win, but we also want competition to prepare us for regionals and state tournaments.”
If not for Emily Bowe's first-period goal, the Stormin' Pointers wouldn't have been in a position to extend Thursday's game into overtime.
With 8 minutes and 18 seconds remaining, Bowe had his penalty kick blocked, but converted the rebound and putback to tie the game at 1-1.
Thursday's goal was his second of the season after leading the team in goals in 2023.
“Towards the end of last year, we moved (Bow) back to central attacking midfield and removed her from the forward role,” Schmidt said. “She's a great ball handler and she can really control the middle part of the field. That's what we need in our No. 10. She's just a feeder.”
Bowe, who was a first-team all-conference and all-district player last season, has adapted well to his position and led the team with four assists.
“I feel like when I was in the nine, I didn't get the ball as much,” Bowe said. “Now I feel like when I get the ball, I can help my teammates score.”
One of those teammates is sophomore Lily Miller, who leads CPU with seven goals.
“She (Miller) has been playing great,” Bowe said. “She's such a hustler. I love her work ethic. And she's always in the right place at the right time.”
“The two in the middle, Lilly, are our strikers and they work together really well,” Schmidt said. “They're both very good. If they can move the ball well and get past the last defender, we can pretty much get past them and have some of the great chances we've had so far this year. ”
It's no wonder the Stormin' Pointers, who are 3-0 and ranked ninth with a plus-15 point differential, will bring out their opponent's best effort every game.
“We're in a great position at this point in the season,” Schmidt said. “It's a good reminder of what we've been working towards. It also puts a bit of a target on our backs, because people want to knock us off that perch. We have to give everyone our best game.”
CPU's next contest will be another Wammack Road game against Mount Vernon (4-4) on Tuesday.
