C. Jemal Horton
CHARLOTTE – Cabarrus County has grown accustomed to seeing the Cox Mill girls soccer team regularly near the top of the conference standings. And while the Chargers aren't in the No. 1 spot yet this season, they're still among the league's elite.
The Chargers currently sit at 9-4-3 overall and 5-1-1 in the Greater Metro 4 Conference, ranking first among Cabarrus County teams in the league.
The Chargers were the only team to fall behind first-place Mooresville in conference play, closing the gap with a 2-1 home win over the Blue Devils on Friday.
Cox Mill, which finished runner-up in GMC play the past two seasons, is on the rise and won its first conference title since 2021, when the Chargers went 18-0-1 and also won the Class 3A state championship. I'm thinking of acquiring it. Championship.
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Of course, the Chargers have since moved up to the tougher Class 4A and are looking to win their first conference title at that level.
Friday night was a big step.
Simply put, the Chargers stepped up in every aspect.
Mooresville was averaging nearly four goals per game. Cox Mill held the Blue Devils to one point. Before Friday, the Blue Devils had allowed just one goal in conference play this season. The Chargers scored twice and threatened to score a few others.
The Chargers avenged an earlier season loss to Mooresville on Friday, buoyed by goals from senior Simone Jenkins and junior Lily Labespere.
Cox Mill's defense was also solid, especially senior defender Alivia McCain, supported by the strong play of senior goalie Reece DeJong.
With five regular season conference games remaining, the Chargers are only half a game away from first place.
The loss ended Mooresville's winning streak at eight, but they are now 10-3 overall and 6-1 in GMC.
Cox Mill coach Eric Clark called the win over Mooresville “awesome.” “We would have lost to them earlier in OT (2-0), so if we had lost, we really could have been eliminated from the conference race.”
So the Chargers made it to the championship level on Friday, in perhaps the most important game of the season, despite being undermanned.
Cox Mill played without four starters due to injury, including senior Kieran Fisher, the Chargers' second-leading scorer.
Coach Clark used three freshmen, forwards Anna Kirkwood and Lydia Wilson and defender Marissa Perry, who were on the field essentially the entire time.
As a result, the Chargers have the assets to continue their hunt and stay strong.
Junior Ella Berry (7 goals, 1 assist) is the team's No. 1 scorer, and Cox Mill has senior Shazza Hassan, junior Courtney Chase, Jenkins, senior Riley Adamson, senior Offensive contributions are also coming from Sarabeth Raso, sophomore Maddie Hecht, and junior Joely. Steld and seniors Ayla Bullen, McCain and Wilson.
DeJong, meanwhile, played goalie at the state level this year, scoring 8.6 goals per game. Also, junior Maddie Wade has not allowed a point in the three games she has played in goal.
West Cabarrus Eva Morin The midfielder is GMC's top offensive player as he is number 1 in points scored (30). She also leads the conference in points (12) and is tied for second with six assists.
Other Cabarrus players in the top 10 in points are Hickory Ridge; aubrey hutchins (5th place with 20 points), AL Browns Jocelyn Salazar (6th place with 18 points), West Cabarrus hannah hibbert and Lizabeth Noyola (tied for 7th with 16), A.L. Brown. Haley Laughlin and cox mills Ella Berry (tied for 9th place with 15).cox mills courtney chase Next is 12 points.
Meanwhile, the Wolverines' Hibbert leads the league with eight assists.
Also in the top 10 in assists are Noyola and Chase (tied for 2nd with 6), AL Brown. Yanel Acosta and cox mills Sarabeth Laso (tied for 6th with 5), Hutchins (8th with 4), and Cox Mills. Alivia McCain and hickory ridge Hannah Workman (All three tied for 10th place).
