Mayfield vs. NDCL girls soccer: Wildcats see through 2-1 win
Aug. 19—Not every match is going to be a masterpiece, as Mayfield would attest following an Aug. 19 encounter with visiting Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin.
As long as it leads to a positive result for a Wildcats' side seeking to building on a solid campaign last fall, however, it doesn't have to be a masterpiece in August. It just has to be one piece on which to proceed, with plenty of time to find premier form.
Mary Isabella netted a brace, including the eventual match-winner past the hour mark, to lead Mayfield past NDCL, 2-1.
#NHsoccer Mayfield senior striker Molly Snider discusses a 2-1 win over NDCL
Brought a nice wrinkle to the attack with pace & workrate in key spurts wide right as a complement to Mary Isabella's quality wide left
That Mayfield attack can be a handful when it uses width well pic.twitter.com/SuWXPiO6TA
— Chris Lillstrung (@CLillstrungNH) August 20, 2023
The Wildcats (2-0-1) showed attacking promise early and late — not necessarily through the bridge of the match. That promise was enough to grab the result.
"Something I just told the girls was every game isn't going to be pretty," Mayfield coach Ivica Miljak said. "The result is what matters. Because we're so early in the season, we're working on a few things, ironing out a few kinks in the way we're trying to play and just try to build momentum as we go.
"So at this point in the season, the results are promising. The performance will keep coming along."
Locked in a 1-1 stalemate in the 63rd minute, Isabella got a look at a one-touch chip from the left flank. Opting for placement over power, the pacey senior striker slotted it side net.
#NHsoccer Mary Isabella for the brace with a chippy 63rd min
2-1 Mayfield pic.twitter.com/NS3jsrvl5k
— Chris Lillstrung (@CLillstrungNH) August 19, 2023
"I didn't really see any people in the middle," Isabella said. "I was originally looking for a cross. I did not see many runs in the middle. But at the upper corner, I did see an open shot."
Isabella had given her side a 1-0 advantage in the 18th minute. But the off-ball movement from the Wildcats, discerning pockets of space well for service, evaporated as the 40 wore along.
Subsequently, the Lions (1-1) grew into the match, with improved ballwinning and service.
They got their equalizer in the 25th minute. Freshman Zoey Myers followed up on set-piece aftermath for her first high school goal to make it a 1-1 match.
Mayfield's Sofia Leffler, off Molly Snider near-post service, and NDCL's Macey Beers off an Amelia Alt through ball traded decent looks in the 46th and 60th, respectively.
Then Isabella chipped home the final margin.
"I think we do kind of want to wrap around these games, when they are a little more sloppy right now," Isabella said. "We want to connect our team a little more.
"I know it's still the beginning of the season, so later on, as our team connection grows more and our bond, as that continues to grow throughout the season, I think we're going to wrap that all together, and the game will look a lot cleaner."
Lions center back Lexi Dobbert did well to clear a strike off the line in the 65th to keep her side in striking distance.
After opening the season with a win over West Geauga, NDCL coach Rick Sirl wants to see his side show the potential it displays in spurts over a full 80.
"A lot of overthinking," Sirl said of this match. "Self-induced stress and tension, I think. We probably made it a lot bigger in our own heads than it needed to be. We never really got into our groove, playing outside the system.
"We were pushing things and not really looking at the possession as much, looking to go too forward all the time. Just not being patient. But it's a growing experience hopefully."
Coming soon
For more from this match, as Miljak and Isabella discuss Mayfield's hopes to improve upon a 10-win 2022, check back in the coming days on News-Herald.com and in our print edition.
