Panthers find first win

After three sequential home games, the Panthers girls soccer team is now 1-7, but has been making strides to bolster their offense.

Kuemper Catholic

The 2-4 Knights played Creston Thursday, April 18 in what would look to be a shut out, but ended up a narrow 3-2 win for Kuemper Catholic.

The score was 3-0 with less than five minutes remaining, but the Panthers are trained to play until the clock hits zero.

Senior Zoe Ralston took control of the ball from deep on the Panthers’ side of the field. She was able to control the ball up the field and find a goal, narrowing the lead to two.

Shortly after, senior Lydia Goins pulled nearly the same move -— navigating the ball from one end of the field to the other, taking the shot and scoring a second goal for the Panthers.

With only minutes remaining, Creston needed only one goal to tie the score.

The Knights were able to hang on defensively, ultimately taking a 3-2 victory.

Chariton

Against the 2-5 Chariton Chargers Friday, April 19, Creston was able to get out to an early lead.

A first-half goal by Goins set the pace for the rest of the game, the Panthers able to hang on for a 1-0 win, their first of the season.

The Panthers took 27 shots through the course of the game while the Chargers only had nine. Three of them were shots on goal, all saved by goalkeeper Lea Stonebraker.

Lewis Central

The 8-3 Titans came out swinging Wednesday against the Panthers, taking 49 shots and keeping Creston from taking a single shot.

“Last year when we played Lewis Central, they scored 13 points in the first half and mercy ruled us,” assistant coach Ryan Burwell said. “This time we played them the whole game. It was a great defensive game.”

Stonebraker had 20 saves, keeping the Titans from ending the game early.

The Panthers play three more consecutive home games, the first being Tuesday against Glenwood.