Leslie, MI. – It was a cool and windy evening, but that didn’t deter the Napoleon Pirates girls’ soccer team from coming away with a hard-fought 3-0 victory over the host Blackawks of Leslie. The pirates started with the ball and put lots of pressure on the Blackhawks, but their goalkeeper, Aubrey Farr, came up with some big saves.
The Blackhawks got a few good shots on the Pirates, but Alessia “Roma” Romagnuolo did a great job stopping everything that came her way. The Pirates’ defense did a great job, and with less than 5 and a half minutes left in the first half, it was Meghan Smith breaking the scoreless tie with a big kick coming off to Farr’s right off a corner kick from Freshman Kate Van Wagnen, giving the Pirates a 1-0 lead, which they took into the half.
After the half, it was the Pirates striking fast and furious in less than a minute when Lily Eagen made a great long-distance kick, which got past Farr to give the Pirates a 2-0 lead. Both teams battled each other really hard. With a little over 6 to go, it was Smith getting her second goal of the night off another Van Wagnen corner kick, and the defense stood tough, giving the Pirates the huge victory.
Smith finished with 2 goals while Van Wagnen had two assists, and Romagnuolo picked up her 4th clean sheet of the season, which is outstanding since this is the first time the Italian exchange student has ever played organized soccer.
The Pirates, 4-7-1, will host Grass Lake in a league meet Friday night. Leslie, 7-6-2, will travel Monday to Brooklyn Columbia Central.
