It hasn’t always been pretty, but Cardinal Gibbons soccer’s title defense bid remains alive
Margo Flack’s message to her Cardinal Gibbons girls’ soccer team ahead of Tuesday’s Region 4-4A quarterfinal was simple.
“This is your field,” Flack said. “You have to earn all 80 minutes.
“Just want it more.”
At halftime, with both teams still scoreless, the message was more succinct.
“Don’t let them stay in it,” the coach said.
Cardinal Gibbons finally broke in the 66th minute with a Macy Berg penalty kick and Juliana Torres added an insurance goal eight minutes later as the Chiefs beat MAST Academy 2-0.
It was a survive-and-advance type of performance from the defending Class 4A state champions.
“At this point, a win is a win,” Flack said. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be pretty.”
In one sense, that has been the story of Cardinal Gibbons’ season.
The Chiefs (8-4-6), playing with a reloaded roster after graduating six seniors from their 2021 state champion team, have only scored 30 goals through 18 games this season. Seven of those came in a district tournament game against Franklin Academy. Remove that contest, and Cardinal Gibbons has two games with at least three goals scored.
The Chiefs have relied on strong defense and steady play from their goalkeepers — Cardinal Gibbons has six shutouts this season and eight more games (including five of its six ties) in which it has held its opponent to one goal — as well as dominating possession to stay in games while finding an opportunity to score.
“We’ve struggled to score throughout our season,” Flack said.
Tuesday was more of the same.
The Chiefs had possession for most of the opening 40 minutes and rarely played in their defensive third but went into halftime with the game tied 0-0.
They needed one moment, one break in their favor to avoid the game being decided in overtime or on penalty kicks.
They got two in the span of about eight minutes, with their top goal scorers leading the charge.
The first came when sophomore Tayler Bakowski was fouled inside the box, giving Gibbons a penalty kick with about 25 minutes left. Berg, a junior, fired the shot past MAST’s goaltender to open scoring.
“Definitely a sigh of relief,” said Berg, who has five goals on the season. “It helped us settle in a little more.”
Eight minutes later, Berg helped the Chiefs get an insurance goal. Her centering pass found Torres, who flicked a shot to the back post for her team-leading 10th goal of the season.
“We have really good chemistry,” Torres said. “It’s amazing. Couldn’t ask to play with a better player.”
Flack will look for more from the duo as the playoffs continue, with their next matchup coming against Gulliver Prep in the regional semifinals on Friday.
“We talk to them a lot to just go out there and take over the game,” Flack said. “That’s what they do best. They do. They’re two special players, and they enjoy the game being on their shoulders and they do it well.”
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