Jay girls win fifth straight

Take enough shots, and the ball is bound to go in.
It’s the approach the Patriots took on Thursday night.
Pepper Oak Hill goalkeeper Andrea Wilk, and eventually one will get past her.
For the first 46 minutes, Wilk responded to the challenge, turning away each of the Patriots’ dozen shots. Three more attempts at the net missed the frame, and another five chances went unfinished.
Early in the second half, though, she got beat.
As the home team kept up the pressure, she faulted again.
“That is what we talked about at halftime,” said coach Giles Laux, whose Jay County High School girls soccer team scored twice in the second half to beat the Oak Hill Golden Eagles 2-0.
“It was a matter of just getting a better look, a better shot,” he added. “We were knocking.”
It was the fifth straight win — and third shutout in a row — for Jay County (5-1), which travels to Berne to take on South Adams at 10 a.m. Saturday. A win would secure back-to-back Allen County Athletic Conference championships.
In the 47th minute Thursday, Jay County junior Lucy Laux had the ball near midfield and sent a pass to her right at teammate Kendra Muhlenkamp for a give-and-go. The pass was a little too far for Muhenkamp, who ran to her right to chase the ball. After gaining control, she kicked the ball back toward Laux, but it was slightly off the mark.
As it rolled toward Wilk, Laux slid to tip the ball, getting to it moments before Wilk did. Laux’s tip ricocheted off the keeper, spun toward the net and slowly rolled across the goal line for the eventual game-winning tally.
“Right before the goalie,” Giles Laux said of his daughter getting to the ball a split-second before Wilk. “The crashing we’ve been doing, they’ve been stepping up and they know good things will happen.
“They do, and they have.”
The scoring opportunities kept coming for the Patriots. Forwards Kayla Ferguson, Alex Bader, Mikele Suman, Stormi Canterbury and Laux all had their chances. Ferguson and Bader both had attempts miss the frame. Wilk turned away a handful of Laux shots, and Canterbury had crossing attempts saved by the Oak Hill goalkeeper.
“Can’t say enough about those girls,” Giles Laux said. “They fought.
“They don’t quit on each other.”
That intensity paid off when Muhlenkamp notched her third goal of the season with less than seven minutes to play in the game.
The sophomore dribbled the ball into the 18-yard box with her right foot, made a move to her left and sent a left-footed shot past Wilk to double the Patriot lead.
“Sweet, very nice,” Laux said of the swift footwork. Muhlenkamp had another opportunity three minutes later that was saved, and with 15 seconds to go Lucy Laux had a prime opening in the Golden Eagle defense but her shot sailed over the net.
On the other side of the field, Jay County goalkeeper Lilly Rogers was never challenged. The best chance Oak Hill had was late in the first half when it had the ball deep in the Patriot zone, but junior defender Briana Muhlenkamp — Kendra’s older sister — turned away the chance. Along with the eldest Muhlenkamp sister, Emily, Megan Smith, Alexus Liette and Sydnee Lee, the Jay County defense kept any pressure off Rogers.
Oak Hill only had two shots, neither of which was on frame, and Rogers did not record a save.
“We want her bored,” Laux said. Rogers has not allowed a goal since Aug. 20, a 9-1 win over Muncie Burris. Since a 4-0 season-opening loss to the Richmond Red Devils, the Patriots have outscored their opponents 24-1.
With the matchup Saturday against South Adams — the Starfires are 3-2 this year and Jay County won 8-1 last season — Laux is hoping for the same output offensively from his squad.
“(There’s a) lot riding on it,” he said.