By Sara Page, Midlothian Exchange
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The two halves of the first game in the Central Region College Showcase girls’ soccer tournament looked like two different games. The Midlothian and Deep Run varsity squads went from conservative play to no-holds-barred; the game went from a one-team domination to an even match; and the teams walked away with their first no-decision of the year, 0-0, after two overtime periods.

Though Deep Run penetrated Midlothian’s side of the field a couple of times, it was the Wildcat defense that got the test in the first half, and the team passed, holding the Lady Trojans to long looks. Deep Run junior Katie Dietz helped hold the Midlothian offense quiet on the right side and was tested early. Midlothian forward Erin Layne got position on a ball sent ahead from the midfield. Dietz came up from deep in Deep Run territory to make the stop as the last line of defense. A few minutes later, Midlothian midfielder Shannon Ropelewski received a cross from Sarah Putney and sprinted down the left sideline. Dietz turned on the afterburners herself, stayed with the play and kept the ball contained to corner.

The shots would eventually come for the Lady Trojans though. Midlothian’s midfield controlled play throughout the first half

“Our midfield is really solid this year,” Midlothian head coach Cammie Ward said. “I thought we did a good job for the most part holding the ball, carrying the ball. We just needed to look to feed a little bit more, to get our offensive strikes better.”

Midlothian got off a couple long shots midway through the half and came closest to striking pay dirt in the 38th minute when Putney brought the ball into the Deep Run penalty box. Deep Run goalie Chelsea Parker came out to make the stop and the two collided. The ball rolled past Parker toward the goal and with an onslaught of Midlothian players closing in, Parker scrambled to her feet to collect the ball.

“What we were looking for was to diversify our offense,” Ward said. “We were very predictable [in] this game; going to the corner, looking for the cross and then running in. What happened is, we weren’t timing our runs well enough. So what we’re looking to do this season is just try to look to vary it up a little bit more.”

Deep Run stormed out of the gate in the second half. The team pressured the goal and gave the Lady Trojan defense a run for its money. Midlothian goalie Kirsten Hancock got a chance to show her stuff early with three shots coming from three different players in the first five minutes of the second half. She got some help from her defense too.

Erica Putney stopped a one-on-one situation with Deep Run’s Rachel Powers. She got an angle on the play and tapped the ball away as Powers zeroed in on the goal. Rachael Creamer also had a nice stop with time winding down on a corner kick. She leapt in the air and got a head on the ball to redirect it out of the Midlothian goal area.

Midlothian wasn’t without their chances offensively but couldn’t get it between the posts.

The teams played through two five minute overtime periods to the draw, and for Midlothian, the result was a small victory.

“Of course I’d like a win, but yeah, I thought for our first game, a regional team that, obviously, we’re going to compete with, [it was an] excellent game. Very intense,” Ward said.

The Lady Trojan’s second match of the tournament against Powhatan was postponed due to inclement weather Friday night.