CUMBERLAND — Avery Miller scored all five of No. 2 Allegany’s goals, leading the Campers to a 5-1 win over Fort Hill on Monday.
The Campers (1-1-1, 1-0 City League) controlled possession and shots, and Miller did the rest.
“A good rivalry game, it always is,” Allegany head coach Mat Schartiger said. “They bring their best, we bring our best. They’ve got a solid squad over there, we knew they were gonna give us a run.”
Miller got the scoring started at the 34:10 mark of the first half. Peyton Schartiger set her up for a tap-in shot.
At the 21:02 mark, Allegany set up for a throw in, and Myia Miller connected with Avery Miller for another short goal.
“We looked for seam runs, looked for our through balls,” coach Schartiger said. “Got our wings pushing up, getting them to play through the through balls.”
The Millers teamed up again at the 12:33 mark when Avery scored from about 15 yards out.
The Sentinels (0-1, 0-1 City League) responded at the 4:02 mark when Nevaeh Bunbasi set up Allie Hipp for a tap-in goal.
“Regardless of the score, I felt like we played well,” Fort Hill head coach Dave Neff said. “We have a young team and we’re gonna have to work through some growing pains. Solid adjustments at halftime, it made all the difference in the second half.”
Less than a minute later, Myia Miller deflected a ball near the goal to Avery Miller who scored her fourth goal, pushing Alco’s halftime lead to 4-1.
Avery Miller completed the scoring at the 34:10 mark of the second half off an Ella Shade assist.
“She’s so much stronger, her dedication, her strength is great,” coach Schartiger said of Avery Miller. “Couple her with the talent around her, it’s a good group of girls.”
Of Allegany’s 14 shots on goal, five came after halftime as Fort Hill made a key halftime adjustment to limit the Campers’ chances to push the lead.
“One of the big changes was how we were approaching the speed of the attack,” Neff said. “We’re controlling and containing them backwards. We also made sure we didn’t lose back post anymore, that’s kinda what got away from us in the first half.”
Allegany outshot Fort Hill 14-3 and had a 5-3 edge in corners.
The Campers controlled possession, preventing the Sentinels from finding many chances to set up its offense for a shot.
“This is what made the big difference in the second half, our intensity coming after the ball,” Neff said. “We allowed them to be first to the ball, we weren’t the aggressive ones in those situations.”
Jemma Stafford recorded nine saves for Fort Hill while Brylinn Beatty stopped three shots for Allegany.
Both teams head to West Virginia on Thursday.
The Campers head to Frankfort at 4 p.m. while the Sentinels travel to Petersburg at 5 p.m.
“I never want a cupcake game to start the season,” Neff said. “That gives you a false sense. Allegany showed us right where we were, where we have deficiencies and where we have strengths. We’re gonna go to film, check that out and it’s gonna be a good review because we played a good team.”