×

Lynn Shines For F/CV

Senior Plays Part In 5 Goals As Golden Cougars Win

Falconer/Cassadaga Valley’s Mary Lundmark advances the ball up the field during Thursday’s CCAA West Division game at Bill Race Field in Falconer. P-J photo by Christian Storms

FALCONER — It did not take long for Falconer/Cassadaga Valley’s (4-2-0, 2-1-0) Kayla Lynn to make her presence felt in Thursday’s Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association Division 1 West girls soccer game against Southwestern (2-3-0, 1-1-0).

Just four minutes in, the Golden Cougars senior forward used her speed to dart past the Southwestern defense and buried the opening goal on a breakaway, thanks to a through ball from Michaela Olson. Lynn’s goal was the first of three she would score as Falconer/Cassadaga Valley cruised to a 5-0 victory.

“I don’t think it’s any surprise that we try to find the ball on Kayla’s foot any time we can,” Falconer/Cassadaga Valley head coach Brett Johnson said. “We look for that through ball. I think a lot of teams know it’s coming, but we have the speed so we take advantage of it. We try to play the ball on the outside where we have some speed, too. Then we can be a full-field threat, not just up the middle.”

After the first goal, the Golden Cougars kept attacking with their speed and a few minutes later it worked again.

A quick counter attack saw Lynn gain possession in the box again, but this time she dished a pass to Julianna Roth streaking in from the left side and she laced a ball into the bottom corner to give Falconer/Cassadaga Valley the 2-0 lead inside the first 10 minutes of the game. About 10 minutes later, Lynn scored her second goal on another breakaway, thanks to a pass from Bailey Olson and that 3-0 lead stood until halftime.

The Golden Cougars’ Kayla Lynn looks to pass. P-J photo by Christian Storms

“She’s someone you have to account for on the field every time,” Southwestern head coach Derek Houser said about Lynn. “She plays with a lot of aggressiveness. She did a lot on her own. There were times where we had players where they needed to be and she made a quick move. Speed is always something you try to account for and it’s always something that’s dangerous.”

As the game wore on, the Southwestern defense adjusted to the Falconer/Cassadaga Valley attack and was able to limit the high-danger chances. While the Golden Cougars were getting their chances toward net, it was not just a one-sided affair as Southwestern managed several good looks, but it was not able to get any in the back of the net.

“We need to take those opportunities and put them in,” Houser said about Southwestern finishing on its chances. “Olean last week we had multiple chances and we only needed the one. When you play quality teams, if you don’t put in your chances there is a chance it’s going to come back and bit you.”

Behind the strong on-ball defense for Falconer/Cassadaga Valley stood eighth-grade goalkeeper Ellyson Baglia and she was the biggest reason the Golden Cougars maintained the clean sheet. The first-year netminder turned aside several quality chances, including making a huge stop on a breakaway early in the second half which was the highlight of her sevensave shut out.

“Ellyson stepped up huge,” Johnson said of his goalie. “We talked to the defense at the beginning of the season about playing tight and not letting anything through because we’ve got to try and help her out as much as we can. But she’s been great. She’s stepping up huge for us this year.”

Falconer/Cassadaga Valley closed out the second half with a goal from Roth, assisted by Lynn, and then Lynn scored the fifth with a pass from Natalie Dossey.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today