Beaumont vs. Lutheran West girls soccer: Blue Streaks bombard on new pitch's dedication day, 5-0
Sep. 26—Thankfully for all parties involved Sept. 26 as Beaumont welcomed Lutheran West, the rain held off until about the 76th minute.
That downpour wasn't appreciated, as the Blue Streaks' new on-campus St. Angela Merici Field was being dedicated on this particular afternoon.
The downpour Beaumont applied to break in its pitch was appreciated, on the other hand, by the home faithful before the rain arrived at all.
Senior striker Ellie Olack netted a brace and also contributed an assist on senior day as the Blue Streaks romped to a comprehensive 5-0 victory.
#NHsoccer @BlueStreaksAD senior Lexi Patton discusses her side's 5-0 win over Lutheran West as Beaumont dedicated its new on-campus St. Angela Merici Field
Generally lively 80 & contributed a lovely free kick strike approaching the hour mark pic.twitter.com/Ix5CZkbLcW
— Chris Lillstrung (@CLillstrungNH) September 27, 2022
Beaumont (6-5) enjoyed a 17-1 shots on target advantage, generated seven corners and were relentless in possession for much of the 80.
"I think we were doing really good connecting," Olack said. "We all wanted to win. We all wanted to shoot. And I think we had a really good performance today. We were trying to get a lot of goals. We were trying to get every senior to score. I think our connection was really good today."
The Blue Streaks took a 3-0 lead out of the opening 40.
Olack netted the opener in the ninth minute on a one-touch strike unmarked around the edge of the six off a Cassidy McDonald free kick.
#NHsoccer @BlueStreaksAD 1-0
Ellie Olack 9th min pic.twitter.com/BvF29BR81T
— Chris Lillstrung (@CLillstrungNH) September 26, 2022
Fellow senior Sophia Boes made it a 2-0 match in the 19th with a far-post header off Olack service.
#NHsoccer @BlueStreaksAD 2-0
Sophia Boes 19th min pic.twitter.com/XAcnYD4n6P
— Chris Lillstrung (@CLillstrungNH) September 26, 2022
Nora Carlton rounded out a dominant opening 40, pouncing on a loose ball in the middle of the box off a defender trap that went awry and slotting a right-footed strike in the 38th to push the margin to 3-0.
#NHsoccer @BlueStreaksAD 3-0
Nora Carlton 38th min pic.twitter.com/Je4daOPwkm
— Chris Lillstrung (@CLillstrungNH) September 26, 2022
Lexi Patton generated the fourth on a lovely upper-90 free kick in the 54th, and Olack provided the final margin with a nice switch and near-post finish in the 64th.
#NHsoccer @BlueStreaksAD 4-0
Lexi Patton 54th min pic.twitter.com/095wo8XJmF
— Chris Lillstrung (@CLillstrungNH) September 26, 2022
Displaying prowess on set pieces, with three goals coming off restarts, was a welcome sight among many. That also included shape in the natural flow of attack, which was played notably wide on the new turf and operated effectively.
Even rain in the 76th minute couldn't dampen that.
"It's really fun, especially being the one who gets to kick them," Olack said, referring to corners. "It's really rewarding whenever your teammates are able to finish and put in the goal or even get close to scoring. And it's nice, whenever it bounces around, we can get a lot of opportunities then.
"I think we were spreading our shape pretty well. It was good, because then we're able to connect all the people throughout the field. Spreading the shape wide, we're able to cross it and get it to the other side easily, which is nice. We still have those people in the middle to distribute wide."
Coming soon
For more from this match, as Olack and Beaumont director of soccer Dennis Weyn discuss the benefits of the new turf pitch and the long-term vision for the program, check back in the coming days on News-Herald.com and in our print edition.
