Lineup shift keys victory (10/07/05)

All they needed was a little stir.

Jay County moved a banana here, a kiwi there and a strawberry over to the side and scored in just a minute and 18 seconds. The “fruit salad” keyed the Patriot girls soccer team’s 1-0 victory over the Yorktown Tigers Thursday.

During the game “fruit salad” was the Jay County’s code for a lineup change with each player taking on a different designation — strawberry, banana, kiwi, etc. The key to the shift was Sara Garringer trotting from the back line on defense to the front line and back again.

Coach Sue Rager made the move to start the second half, Garringer scored 1:18 later and then shifted back to defense for most of the remainder of the game to help preserve the win.

“It’s nice when she’s healthy to be able to move her up on the front line,” said Rager of Garringer. “But we definitely need her on the back line too for the defense. ... I think that was the key to the game tonight. She definitely gets (her teammates) motivated, gets them moving ... When they see her coming up from the back line to the front line they get excited. They know what she’s capable of.”

Garringer didn’t take long to show the Tigers (7-6-1) what she was capable of.

Jay County (6-5-2) controlled the ball for most of the first half, but still was locked in a scoreless tie when Garringer stepped to the front line to start the second. The Patriots again pushed the ball to their offensive end, this time with sophomore Dana Horn taking control directly out from the right post.

Horn found some open space and slipped the ball between a pair of defenders to Garringer. Ready for the opportunity, the Jay County junior took a dribble and fired a shot right through the arms of Yorktown goalie Crystal Ellis.

The goal came with 38:42 left in the contest and proved to be the game-winner.

“The Patriots played an excellent game,” said Yorktown coach Joe Greiner after his team made a bunch of runs in the final five minutes only to come up short. “They used their field really well, and their keeper came up with a couple of saves.”

“(We) struggled in the first half. The Patriots had a real good shot, they came up real hard. Our girls put the pressure on them, but it was too little too late.”

Garringer’s goal came on her only shot of the night. Jay County took 15 shots on goal in all, with senior Saffron Redwine totaling six and Tequila Guntle taking four in the first half.

Yorktown finished with five shots on goal, four of which came in the second half. Jenny Tank accounted for two of those shots while the Patriots’ Abby Loy came up with five saves.

The game was Jay County’s final home contest of the year, sending seniors Redwine, Abby Schmiesing and Amber Champ out on a winning note.

“(Abby) has been real good on our corner kicks this year and an important force on the right-hand side of the field,” said Rager. “Saffron has been equally good on the left-hand side of the field. She’s quick, they’re all quick.

“Amber can play on the front line and when I need somebody strong in the midfield she can drop back there and play.”

The victory also ensured Jay County of its sixth consecutive season of .500 or better.

After going 7-7-1 last year, the Patriots can secure a winning season in 2005 if they win their sectional opener at Marion Tuesday against the Blackford Bruins. They defeated Blackford in regular-season action last week, 3-2.

“We need to have the team that played tonight,” said Rager, who had led squads to five straight sectional title games before dropping out in the first round against Marion last season. “We need that aggressiveness coming out. These girls have the ability to go all the way to the final game. I have real confidence in this team.”[[In-content Ad]]