Louisburg downs Heritage Christian for second straight win

By Andy Brown
- Tweet
- Pin It
Updated: April 10, 2017

Andy Brown / Louisburg Sports Zone

Louisburg junior Savannah Reinhart dribbles past a Piper defender during the Lady Cats’ game on April 4 that was postponed. The Wildcats traveled to Heritage Christian on Thursday and came away with a 5-1 win.

OVERLAND PARK – The Louisburg High School girls soccer team has certainly found a rhythm offensively and it continued Thursday against Heritage Christian Academy.

Louisburg scored four first half goals and came away with a 5-1 road victory in Overland Park. It was the second consecutive victory for the Wildcats and they have now scored 11 goals in the last two games after scoring just one in their first two.

“I felt the girls did a fantastic job moving the ball and making runs off of the ball,” Louisburg coach Kyle Conley said. “We were really aggressive and attacked non-stop. I think our chemistry is getting really, really good. We are starting to react and anticipate what the other is going to do. I am very pleased with our level of focus and determination. We came out very strong and driven yesterday.”

The combination of junior Bailey Belcher and freshman Mackenzie Scholtz provided a big challenge for the Heritage Christian back line. Both players scored two first half goals to give the Wildcats a big lead early.

Scholtz added two assists to go with her two goals, while Belcher added a third goal in the second half to record her second straight hat trick. Belcher also added an assist in the win.

Midfielders Hallie Hutsell and Savannah Reinhart also worked well with Scholtz and Belcher to give them looks at the goal.

“Bailey and Mackenzie are playing extremely well right now,” Conley said. “I feel that their play is opening up a lot of space for others because they are drawing so much attention. They both are doing a fantastic job moving off of the ball and it make it very difficult for teams to defend them and try to keep up with their work rate.

“More importantly they are getting the outside midfielders involved and are getting great play from them (Hallie and Savannah). The chemistry between the midfield and targets is the best it has been all year and I feel that it is only going to get better. Sholtzy is doing a very nice job of doing what I am asking her to do and she is playing extremely well right now.”

Louisburg (2-1-1) also got good play out of its defense as the Wildcats have given up just two goals total in their last two wins and limited Heritage’s shots on goal Thursday.

Outside backs Bryn O’Meara and Camdyn Clark, along with Hannah Straub, Bria Jensen, center back Kaitlyn Lewer and goalie Shay Whiting led the Louisburg defense.

“The defense is getting better and better each and every game,” Conley said. “Heritage was a very physical team and I feel we did a nice job standing our ground. The second half we had some difficulty because they were hitting the ball almost 30-40 yards in the air with the wind. I feel we struggled a little bit to anticipate the bounce or the carry the ball would have from the wind pushing it, because it was the first time we played with a massive wind. I do like their communication and how they are playing with one another. I think this group has the potential to be extremely good.”

Belcher got the Wildcats off to a good start as she scored back-to-back goals to give Louisburg a 2-0 lead. Heritage scored to cut the lead in half, but Scholtz responded with two goals to end the first half and the Wildcats led 4-1 at halftime.

Louisburg added another goal in the second half as Belcher converted a penalty kick to seal the win.

The Wildcats put this winning streak together at less than full strength. The injury list is a long one for Louisburg as it has five players that will miss several weeks of action and others that are playing through the pain.

Among those are starters Trinity Moore (broken toe) and Lily Cook (concussion), while sophomore Hayli Detherage hopes to return soon after dealing with a back injury. With some of those injuries, other players have stepped up for the Wildcats and Conley likes what he has seen from his team.

“I was extremely happy with how well we played,” Conley said. “I think the second half we struggled to find feet and got into a kick match with them in which the wind won, but when we found feet and attacked we were a lot of fun to watch.”

Louisburg returns to action today when it travels to Ottawa. It is a varsity only matchup that will begin at 5 p.m. The Wildcats return home Thursday when it hosts Spring Hill.

The Wildcats hosted Piper on April 4, but the game was postponed with 10 minutes remaining in the first half as Louisburg had a 3-0 lead at the time. Belcher, Reinhart and Scholtz all scored goals in the contest and will be resumed April 27 with the lead intact.