Crisp passing fuels Panthers’ 7-1 win

On Sept. 8, a hot, sunny and beautiful day for a soccer match, both teams warmed up while their fans set up chairs along the sidelines of the well-manicured pitch at Moorestown Friends School.

Early on the Palmyra High School fullbacks, seniors Ashatu Moore and Emily Falicki, as well as junior Allie Minnix, controlled the back line and made crisp passes up the field to set up chances for the offense.

After the defense got the ball to sophomore midfielder Meghan Austin, she made a great pass to right winger Charlotte Campbell, who faked out a Moorestown Friends defender and launched a high arcing shot from 20-yards away into the back of the net to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead.

A few minutes later Austin made another great pass to senior forward Gianna Guglielmucci, who promptly drilled it into the net for a goal. Junior midfielders Kyleigh Himel, Madison Flynn and Nellie Bednarek continued to control the middle of the field, getting the ball to Austin, who then set up sophomore winger Addison Elliot for another goal that gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead.

Moorestown Friends started to get some momentum on offense, as goalie Wynne Ay kicked the ball way past midfield to set up several chances, including one to Audrey Crossley who raced down the pitch and scored a goal to make the score 3-1.

Several other chances were denied by Palmyra senior goalie Jillian Hines, who dove to push one shot just wide and jumped to tip another over the net – just two of her 12 tough saves in the game.

The Panthers dominated the second half as the defense stiffened up and the team continued to make great passes from the back line to the midfielders and forwards.

One of those crisp passes went to Guglielmucci, who scored her second goal. Austin had a great second half, scoring two goals and finishing the match with four assists. Campbell continued to play great as the right wing, and scored a second goal during the Panthers 7-1 victory which raised the team’s season record to 2-2.