Strong Effort Not Enough As Wilmington Eliminates Girls' Soccer

Marblehead only allowed Wilmington to score on one of their long list of golden scoring opportunities. Unfortunately for the Magicians, that one tally was all it took.

The host Wildcats cashed in on a rebound midway through the second half on Sunday and went on to earn a 1-0 win in the first round of the North Division 2 postseason, eliminating No. 11 Marblehead from the playoffs.

“We were able to do some things, but there were some things we kind of lacked in tonight,” said Magicians head coach Andrew Bub. “But I think the girls have absolutely nothing to put their heads down about.”

Goaltender Cassie Rodgers was the star of the game for Marblehead. She was under major pressure throughout, making diving saves and throwing her body around to clear loose balls from inside the scoring area.

“She came up huge for us tonight just like she has all year,” said Bub.

Rodgers notched six shutouts in the regular season and was on top of her game once again on Sunday.

There wasn’t much Rodgers could do about Wilmington’s lone score, however. With 28:49 to play, Wildcat junior Rachael Mara fired a shot on net, which was blocked by Rodgers. But the rebound found the foot of Holly Niemiec, who hammered it home to give her team the advantage and eventual win.

Following the setback, Marblehead ended the campaign at 9-6-3. Still, Bub is optimistic about the future of the program. 

“Coming into the season I had expectations of these girls. We were trying to read each other and as the season went on we got better,” said Bub. “Throughout the season we were consistent, and I think that’s the biggest thing in building a program is being consistent. This is only going to make us better in years to come.”