PENDLETON — On Tuesday night, victory was simply a matter of taking a deep breath.
After a primarily frustrating first half for the Pendleton Heights girls soccer team, where the team remained scoreless for just under 40 minutes, the Arabians quickly rediscovered their game, rolling to a 3-0 win against Yorktown.
“It was a little frustrating, but they knew what the problem was,” Pendleton Heights coach Melissa Clark remarked after her program rallied for two second-half goals for a shutout victory.
“Everybody needed to calm down, and get out there and just play. Once we got the first goal in at the end of the first half, they were ready to play ball.”
Behind a first-half goal from junior Braydan Wiles and a pair in the second half from senior Blaine Bishop, the Arabians (8-1) extended their current win streak to eight straight and improved their record in the Hoosier Heritage Conference to a perfect 3-0.
The defending conference champs haven’t lost since falling 2-0 to Westfield in the season opener. And with Tuesday night’s contest marking the first of four consecutive conference match-ups ahead, the Arabians were determined to keep that feeling buried deep in the past.
“We knew we had to start strong,” said Clark, a fourth-year coach at Pendleton Heights. “That first half, we let Yorktown control the half, and we tried to adjust to their type of play, and that’s not how we play. We play domination and intensity the entire time.”
“In the second half, I told them, you got to step it up. It obviously worked.”
Able to control the tempo and prevent the Tigers (4-4, 0-4) from waging any serious attack, Pendleton Heights fired 26 shots and 18 shots on goal to pressure Yorktown’s defense.
Tigers goalkeeper Crystal Ellis held her ground early, warding off seven potential scoring opportunities in the first half, and finished with 11 saves.
Freshman defensive back Maddy Crouch assisted with two clutch saves in the net, but Pendleton Heights continued to apply the pressure, firing away with 10 quick shots the first 20 minutes of the second half.
“Everybody was working together. Everybody was moving, talking, we wanted it,” said Bishop, whose first goal came off a runner in the 49th minute.
“We step it up. We know when to get at it, and when we want it,” said Wiles, who assisted Bishop’s second goal with 26:19 remaining. “We don’t have anyone who works themselves. We all work for the team.”
Wiles’ goal in the first half’s 38th minute helped ease everyone’s mind and picked up the intensity as Pendleton Heights came out of intermission focused, limiting Yorktown to only five shots and three shots on goal.
Arabians goalkeeper Natalie Jarrett was tested for only two saves in the shutout as Yorktown penciled six freshman starters in the lineup. Last year, the Arabians beat Yorktown 5-1.
“When you let down against a team as good as Pendleton they’ll take advantage of it,” said Yorktown coach Joe Griner. “We’re still a very young team. Right now, we’re on the learning curve. This is definitely an improvement from what happened last year. I think we had the right game plan; we just didn’t execute it well enough.”
Not many teams have this season, and Clark, in her final season, believes if the Arabians remain fixed on their game, it could mean an even longer season.
“These girls, and I’ve said this since the beginning of the year, this is the best team Pendleton’s had probably ever and definitely in the four years I’ve coached,” the coach said. “It’s eight in a row right now; we’ll just keep it going. We have a lot to accomplish. We’re hoping to be around after the week after sectionals.”
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