Sterling girls capturing coaches cup magic
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<p>Sterling girls soccer appeared to be headed toward a South Jersey Coaches Cup exit down 2-1 late at Kingsway on Monday afternoon. But then they channeled some cup magic, scoring twice in the closing minutes of regulation to advance to the semifinals with a 3-2 win.</p>
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<p>Junior midfielder Ireland Kay's set piece precision opened the dramatic sequence when her curling corner kick found the head of junior Elyse Simpson for a headed finish in the box. Less than a minute later the Silver Knights were celebrating in almost the same exact spot a goal from junior Antonia Troilo that was assisted by sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='99877' first='Montgomery' last='Draham']. </p>
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<p>It was their second straight come-from-behind win in the tournament. Kay connected with Troilo on a second half equalizer in the first round against Cherokee and Simpson set up senior Maddie Whalen for the overtime winner. </p>
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<p>Though Sterling controlled a lot of the possession, Kingsway was strong defensively and dangerous on the counters. Seniors midfielders Maddie Hicks and Emma Nguyen stood out in the midfield and senior defender Brianna Lewis and senior midfielder Hannah Ferris are both workhorses in the middle. </p>
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<p>Even without their injured star - senior forward Bridget Dickson - Sterling has compiled an impressive 14-0-2 record via a balanced attack that runs through Kay but has a lot of weapons. Seniors Jordan Baker and Shay Wiley are dangerous and hardworking on the wings and the sophomore Draham was an active presence (and thorn) in Kingsway's side. </p>
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<p>Sterling, a fifth seed, will face their toughest test yet when they take on top-seeded and fellow unbeaten team Ocean City in the second of two semifinals on Wednesday in Cherry Hill. Ocean City, the 2021 cup winners, had a comeback of their own to beat Moorestown 2-1 to advance. Senior McKenna Chisholm scored the game-winner in that one.</p>
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<p>Defending champions Eastern will take on Shawnee in the other semifinal on Wednesday. </p>
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Sterling girls soccer appeared to be headed toward a South Jersey Coaches Cup exit down 2-1 late at Kingsway on Monday afternoon. But then they channeled some cup magic, scoring twice in the closing minutes of regulation to advance to the semifinals with a 3-2 win.
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