Lady Hawks move on to sectional with 4-1 win over Aurora Central Catholic

OREGON – The Lady Hawks’ soccer seniors backed up their record Tuesday when they downed Aurora Central Catholic 4-1 to win the 1A Oregon Regional at Oregon Park West.

Three seniors scored for Oregon with Deborah Schmid leading the way with two goals Teagan Champley and Kenna Wubbena adding one each.

Champley put the Hawks on scoreboard, but Aurora tied the game midway through the first period.

“I knew we had the offensive power to score,” said Coach Seger Larson. “We just had to follow the game plan we had and get the ball out wide to open things up.”

And the Hawks did exactly that when Wubbena centered a perfect ball to Schmid who cranked the ball into the goal to give Oregon a 2-1 lead, with two minutes left in the half.

Wubbena scored around the 9-minute mark in the second period when Noelle Girton, a sophomore, laid a perfect pass out to her on a break-a-way up the far sideline. Schmid made the final score 4-1 when she scored with 15 seconds in the game.

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Oregon High School Athletic Director Mike Lawton presents the regional plaque to the Hawks' soccer team after the team won the 1A Oregon Regional on Tuesday, May 14, 2024 downing Aurora Central Catholic 4-1 at Oregon Park East. With the win, the Hawks boosted their record to 18-1 and will face Stillman Valley at. the Shabbona (Indian Creek) Sectional on Saturday, May 18. Game time is noon. (Earleen Hinton)

But Larson also wanted to talk about the defense – in particularly sophomore Sarah Eckardt.

“Sarah played her tail off today,” said Larson. “She stopped their best player, over and over and over again.”

Mili Zavala, a freshman, had two saves for Oregon and Anna Stender, a junior, also had an assist.

Oregon (18-1) will face Big Northern rival Stillman Valley at noon at the Shabbona (Indian Creek) Sectional Saturday, May 18. Stillman advanced to the sectional with a 3-2 win over Rockford Christian.

“I am just so proud of these girls,” said Larson. “I came in I was nervous because I didn’t want to let them down, but they didn’t let me down.”