From Deseret News archives:
High school soccer: Wildcats thrash Timpview, 7-0
It took less than two minutes for the Wildcats to get on the scoreboard. In a theme that presented itself with great frequency, Kendra Pemberton found herself on the left wing with plenty of space. She took the ball to the end line and fired a ball across the middle. Morgan Brown was the recipient on the other end and tapped the ball into the open net.
"We told the girls to come out hard and quick. Boy, did they ever," said Wildcats coach Kevin Rigby. "I thought that we did a good job of establishing what we wanted to to early, and getting a goal in the first minute and a half really helps settle you down and gets you rolling."
In the eighth minute, Brown returned the favor to Pemberton. In a mirror-like display, Brown took the ball to the end on the right side. She crossed it to the middle and Pemberton had the easy tap-in goal on the left.
"I was surprised at how much space they were giving me," Pemberton said. "It was like I was on my half of the field all by myself. I got the one ball to Morgan for the early goal, and then it was just a couple of minutes later she did the exact same thing for me."
Woods Cross dominated the play in all facets. The midfield controlled play and used classic soccer technique in putting the ball out wide to the wings before bringing it back the middle on dangerous balls. Hillary Tebbs, Nikki Fernandes, Jane Campbell, Jaclyn Mills and Brown held possession for long stretches and didn't allow the Thunderbirds to ever seriously threaten the outcome.
"The midfielders did a good job of keeping things going our way," added Rigby. "They did exactly what we asked of them and didn't let up."
The Wildcats' offense didn't let up either. Pemberton scored again in the 20th minute, and Rylei North knocked one in just before the end of the first half for a comfortable 4-0 margin at the break.
The second half continued with Woods Cross dominating. Fernandes added a goal in the 49th minute, and North got her second of the game at the 58-minute mark. Jen Anderson capped the scoring in the 73rd minute.
Woods Cross moves to the semifinals where it will face Region 5 rival Bonneville at 11 a.m. next Thursday at Juan Diego High School.
"We are all close and really good friends, so it makes it fun to play together on the same team," Pemberton said. "I think that because we are so close we play better. We just need to keep doing the things we have been and we will have a good shot."
E-mail: mblack@desnews.com
