Texas HS Girls – Playoffs – Foster vs. Galena Park
The playoffs are underway in the state of Texas and between now and April 15, the final day of the State Tournament, time will fly for the hundreds of teams involved in the postseason in the Lone Star State. Prep…
Access all of Prep Soccer
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe playoffs are underway in the state of Texas and between now and April 15, the final day of the State Tournament, time will fly for the hundreds of teams involved in the postseason in the Lone Star State.
Prep Soccer will continue to follow the action closely, covering as many matches as possible every week and providing reports featuring the players that had remarkable performances in those encounters. Our playoff coverage began on Thursday, with the bi-district round duel between the Foster Lady Falcons and the Galena Park Yellowjackets in Richmond.
Foster 10 – 0 Galena Park
The Division 5A bi-district round match reunited the undefeated district 20 champions Foster Lady Falcons (14-0) and the fourth-placed side from district 19 Galena Park Yellowjackets (12-6) at the Foster High School in Richmond.
Playing at home, the Lady Falcons were quick to put the match to bed, scoring three times in the first ten minutes with forward Kylie Reddell getting on the end of a corner kick and forward Addie Zebold and midfielder Kaitlyn Walsh finding the back of the net from outside the penalty box.
Foster got two more goals before the halftime whistle, with forward Emily Weber getting the ball inside the penalty box and sending it past Galena Park’s goalkeeper Italia Estrada and Zebold hitting a beautiful one-touch finish in the upper corner.
The Lady Falcons didn’t slow down at the start of the second half and extended their lead right off the bat with defender Danielle Sellier sending a left-footed shot into the goal. A few minutes later, Walsh got her second in the evening by concluding a nice combination play with Reddell.
Midfielder Hannah Bolin got on the scoreboard with a beautiful shot from outside the penalty box that found the upper corner of Estrada’s goal. Walsh was the first to get a hat-trick, finishing an indirect free kick called inside Galena Park’s penalty box. Before the final whistle, Zebold got her third goal in the match too, with another beautiful shot.
In the area round, Foster will play Barbers Hill, who overcame Santa Fe 3-1 in their bi-district round match.
Players of the Match
Kaitlyn Walsh
Kaitlyn Walsh
Walsh was tireless in the center of the field for the Lady Falcons, creating numerous goal-scoring opportunities and sending the ball to the back of the net three times herself. An Illinois Tech commit, she had the edge over Galena Park defenders from both physical and technical standpoints and hurt the Yellowjackets in a variety of different ways with her strong play. Walsh was dangerous when finishing from distance, beating opponents off the dribble and finding through balls behind the backline that got her teammates in a good position to score. She was also very efficient with all of her actions and dictated the team’s rhythm during most of the match.
Addison Zebold Addison Zebold M TX
Addison Zebold Addison Zebold M TX
Playing up top for the Lady Falcons, Zebold was a handful for Galena Park’s defense to deal with. Besides being a very good finisher, who can score from anywhere around and inside the penalty box, she demands a great deal of attention from defenders because of her excellent movement off the ball. Zebold was very effective in the final third, always drawing multiple defenders and creating space for her teammates. She scored three beautiful goals that set the tone for Foster’s ample victory.
Hannah Bolin
Hannah Bolin
Bolin’s high level of intensity was one of the things that made the match easier for the Lady Falcons. She was relentless from her midfield position and continued to push the team forward even after Foster had a comfortable advantage on the scoreboard. Bolin was very aggressive in possession, beating defenders off the dribble and always looking to connect with her teammates in the final third. Besides dropping deeper to help the team build from the back, she scored an absolute screamer, sending the ball perfectly into the upper corner from outside the penalty box.
Danielle Sellier
Danielle Sellier
Sellier had a great match playing as a right wingback for the Lady Falcons. With strong coverage from the team’s defenders, she had green light to push forward and did just that, consistently offering an attacking option down the flank. Sellier was aggressive in possession too, looking to beat defenders off the dribble and making excellent runs off the ball to get to the end line. She scored a beautiful goal from outside the penalty box with a one-touch, left-footed finish. On the rare occasions that Galena Park attempted to make play in her side of the field, she used her physicality to shut things down.
Alexa Garcia
Alexa Garcia
Clearly Galena Park’s most skilled player on the ball, Garcia started the match in a more advanced role, trying to get on the end of the team’s long passing attempts. Without much service, she dropped back to play on midfield and helped the team connect some passes and retain possession a little bit more. Although her team wasn’t able to create much, she was involved with much of it.