BERNE — On Friday, the Berne-Knox-Westerlo girls’ soccer team gave an uneven performance in a 2-1 loss to Duanesburg.

Friday’s game is indicative of the season the Lady Bulldogs have experienced this year.
"It’s a rebuilding year," said BKW Coach Coriellen Travis after the game. "When we are playing well, we do very well. They’re working together and it just works. It clicks."

But that doesn’t always happen, as was evident on Friday.

The Bulldogs showed flashes of brilliance on the offensive end, even though they could not convert on many shot opportunities. BKW also gave up a first-half goal and trailed 1-0 at the halftime break.

BKW had five really good chances to score in the first half, led mostly by senior Lauren Ford.

Ford’s best chance came when she got to a loose ball deep in the Duanesburg end. She dribbled the ball a few feet and fired a shot at the goal. But the ball sailed above the crossbar and out of bounds.

Ford finally got a ball to go in the goal in the second half.

Ford again beat Duanesburg players to a loose ball and had just one defender to beat. The Eagles’ defensive player tackled Ford in the penalty area and was called for a foul, giving Ford a penalty kick.

Ford calmly took the kick and fired the ball into the upper far corner of the goal to tie the game 1-1 with 29:32 left in the contest.

Breakdown

The Bulldogs played well but had a defensive breakdown late in the second half.

Duanesburg’s Noelle Hennel got the ball deep in the BKW end and used her speed to get past the BKW defense. Hennel then kicked the ball into the low far corner of the goal to give her team the lead.
"From the midfield to the offense, we were passing the ball well," Travis said. "It made for good scoring opportunities for the ladies. We took shots but their keeper was able to stop them. We were able to keep them down except for a couple of plays."

BKW took 28 shots in the contest and Duanesburg took 22. Duanesburg goalie Ashlyn McGarry made 14 saves.

BKW’s Alyssa Wetterau made six saves in the first half and Anna Kusler made eight in the second half.

The team each had two corner-kick opportunities.
"Strong group of girls"

Though the BKW roster is loaded with upperclassmen, those players do not have a lot of experience.
"We have a lot of seniors," Travis said. "But a lot of them are new. We have six girls that have not played since modified [seventh and eighth grade]. We are older, but not that experienced."

Out of 19 players, 12 are seniors.

Ford has the most experience with two years on the varsity. Allyson Bates, Cassie Diamond, Kusler, Kristie Lee, Ruby Moseby, and Danielle Willsey are the only seniors with experience; each had one year on the varsity.

Brittany Conklin is the only junior with varsity experience. She was on the team as a sophomore last year.

The other seniors on the team are Morgan Larsen, Victoria Lounsbury, Loren Motschmann, Verana Mueller, and Alysha Van Dyke.

The juniors on the team are Kristen Francis, Samantha Fusco, Kayla Lee, Rebecca Villeneuve, Wetterau, and Lauren Wilson.

Travis had to replace two of the best players to come through BKW in the past few years. Cara Swain was a dynamic goal scorer for the Lady Bulldogs in the past few years and Sarah Hannay was a very good goalie who anchored the BKW defense.
"We have a new goalie [Wetterau] who has done a great job," Travis said. "She’s stepped up and saved our butts numerous times. So it was easy to fill the goalie position.
"On offense, we’ve had to work hard to fill the spot of one player," Travis said. "We’ve had a hard time scoring goals. Lauren and Anna are our leading scorers."

Though BKW has a losing record with a 4-9 mark, Travis likes this team, and sees it building toward the future.
"This is a strong group of girls," Travis said. "They like each other and are fun to be around. I can’t ask any more of this team."

Travis is looking forward to coaching a group of talented younger players who are now playing on the junior varsity. The team is undefeated so far this season.
"They are strong on offense and defense," Travis said. "They have been playing together for a long time. Next year should be an outstanding year for us."