Belcher’s four goals help Wildcats to first win

Louisburg junior Bailey Belcher (4) recorded her first hat trick of the season as she finished with four goals in the Wildcats’ 6-1 win over Sumner Academy on Thursday in Kansas City, Kan.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Whatever invisible barrier or obstacle that prevented the Louisburg girls soccer team from finding the back of the net went away Thursday.

After only scoring one goal in their first two games, the Wildcats went on a scoring barrage against Sumner Academy – more specifically in the second half. Louisburg scored five second-half goals en route to a 6-1 victory over the Sabres in Kansas City to get its first victory of the season.

“It was really nice to get going,” Conley said. “We were struggling in the first half to move the ball and attack when we had numbers, but at the same time we missed three breakaways. The second half was a much different story. We moved the ball well and attacked when we had spaces and numbers. I was very pleased with how hard we played. We played together and improved our communication quite a bit.”

A bulk of the Wildcats’ scoring was thanks to the feet of Bailey Belcher. The Louisburg junior recorded her first hat trick of the season and finished the game with four goals.

Belcher scored the team’s lone goal in the first half, before coming through with three more in the second half. Belcher finished with 33 goals on the season last year and Conley knows it was good for her to find success.

“It was nice to see Bailey find the back of the net, especially how frustrating it was during the Tonganoxie game,” Conley said. “It’s really nice seeing us move the ball to get in those scoring positions. It did provide us with some confidence and that showed in our play the rest of the game.”

Following halftime, it was freshman Mackenzie Scholtz who got in on the scoring as she gave the Wildcats a 2-0 lead. Belcher followed with three straight goals and freshman Morgan Messer secured the win with her first varsity goal late in the game.

Although Louisburg allowed a late Sumner goal, Conley was pleased with his defense and the way they shut down the Sabres for most of the match.

“We did a nice job defensively,” Conley said. “I feel we played pretty well and contained the little attack that they had. We did maintain the ball a lot and attacked a lot in the second half especially. We had a lot of opportunities and played hard. Defensively we played pretty well and are still working on our chemistry. I think that we are getting better with that, but it needs to keep improving.”

The Wildcats (1-1-1) will get another test tomorrow when it hosts Piper. The junior varsity is set for 4:30 p.m., and the varsity will follow. Conley hopes this win can help his team put together a nice winning streak.

“It was nice to have a game that we were in control of because it gave us an opportunity to get some kids some more minutes who don’t usually don’t get that much time,” Conley said. “I was pleased with how hard we played and the amount of energy we played with. Getting that first win always helps as well.”

JUNIOR VARSITY GETS SECOND WIN

The Louisburg junior varsity girls bounced back from their loss against De Soto with a 2-0 victory over Sumner Academy on Thursday.

Freshman Erin Lemke scored for the Wildcats and Louisburg was also aided with an own goal from Sumner Academy. Goalies Carson Buffington and Savanah Clark combined for the shutout and moves the Lady Cats record to 2-1.