Birmingham Seaholm girls? soccer coach Mike Thomas works with his team on taking the right shots on net each practice.
‘We work extensively on taking quality shots. We practice four corners, chips, everything to work on the shooting aspect of our offense,? Thomas said.
The shot that gave the Maples a 2-1 win at Clarkston last Thursday wasn’t highly skilled with tactical placement, but rather one born from hustle.
Seaholm’s Emily Marx scored her second goal of the night when she swiped the ball from Clarkston keeper Beth Parks after the netminder stepped up to play a long pass. Marx beat her to the ball and booted in the game-winner for the Maples (4-4-1) with 18:47 left in the second half.
‘That’s what we’ve been working on since Monday, because we have been struggling on fifty-fifty balls. All week we’ve been working on getting up there and working and it’s paying off,? Thomas said.
Winless this season and still searching for an offensive explosion, the Wolves rebounded from a woeful 6-1 Maples? shot advantage in the first half and nearly matched their opponents in the second half, 7-6.
Trailing 1-0 at 24:59 of the second half, Julie Warner found the net, scoring on a header resulting from a well-placed corner kick by Brittany Davis.
The Wolves are committed to improving upon their lack of shots on offense.
‘We’re working on it in practice and they’re taking more shots and we’re scoring goals now. We’re making strides every practice and every game and I can’t be disappointed with that,? Clarkston coach Sarah Smith said.
‘We tend to hang on to the ball and look for someone to pass to rather than knowing what we are going to do with the ball when we get it.
‘We don’t have that quickness yet, to just get the ball and shoot.?
In addition to working to get more shots on net, the Wolves are improving their ball-handling skills.
‘We lose control of the ball a lot. We don’t have great first-touch control. We’re being persistent and we’re working on it. We know it’s not going to come overnight. We’re trying to keep a positive attitude and we don’t come to practice or the games with negativity and I have a lot of respect for the girls because of that,? Smith said.
The girls have two OAA II contests this week. Look for Tuesday’s results against Auburn Hills Avondale and Thursday’s game against Farmington, which starts at 7 p.m., at www.clarkstonnews.com.