Saturday, July 14, 2001
By Art Redd
SJSports Staff Writer
When a team works hard for an extended period of time to achieve a goal, that effort is usually rewarded with a victory. The South Jersey Banshees were hosting the, then, undefeated Charlotte Lady Eagles at Cherokee Stadium in Marlton. Solid goaltending and determined defense kept the Lady Eagles and their eight straight victories off the scoreboard. Midfielder Kristin Dunst received a pass from Lisa Genna from about 15-yards out and scored the only goal of the game. The defense continued to work hard the rest of the game to preserve the win.
A team doesn't go undefeated without good players, strong goaltending and a good coaching staff. When the Lady Eagles from Charlotte rolled into Cherokee Stadium, they held the beat record with an astonishing 8-0 record in the W2 League. The last year's Eastern Conference champs had earlier defeated the Banshees by a 4 to 0 margin and were ready for another win.
The Banshees (7-4-1), second place in the Eastern Conference, heard all about their opponents and how well they play soccer. But on this day, the South Jersey team played very aggressively, preventing the Lady Eagles from gaining any easy scoring chances. Charlotte still managed to find scoring opportunities which goal keeper Janel Schillig stood tall waiting for the challenge.
During the first half of this game, both teams were putting pressure on the opposing goalies. The Lady Eagles had more scoring opportunities that went either wide or over the net. The shots that were headed for the goal were stopped by Schillig. In the second half, the Banshees came through with a great defensive play to gain control of the ball. Moving across midfield, Genna found an open Dunst who was all alone in front of the goaltender. Dunst caught Jennifer Branan leaning the wrong way which gave the Banshees the one and only goal of the game.
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