MORGANTOWN – It sure can be lonely being the goalkeeper of the Morgantown High School girls’ soccer team.
Most nights the action is all on the other end of the field and the Mohigans (6-0-1) have allowed just one goal all season.
However, MHS goalkeeper Camdyn Smith isn’t lonely, bored, or frustrated. She’s an integral part of the team and is often used to initiate the MHS offense.
“I think she is what most teams would want from their keeper,” MHS second-year head coach Bri Frontuto said. “She makes it a true 11 on the field for us. Being able to have her on the field and use her feet in the way that she does, and play a ball where we need her to, she does a lot for us.”
Smith is even taking free kicks as far as 50 yards away from the goal as the Mohigans use her booming right foot.
Not only is Smith a weapon, but the constant action of the MHS attack keeps her involved with passes back to her as she switches field for MHS.
“I don’t get a bunch of shots because we have such good defense,” Smith, who began playing goalkeeper when she was nine, said. “But my team knows that I know how to use my feet, and they get me involved when they need me. My travel team always makes sure that they use the keepers and their feet to keep them involved. It really helps us build out of the back.”
Smith finished with just three saves on Tuesday night as the Mohigans beat visiting Wheeling Park 3-0. The Patriots (5-2-1) tallied seven shots in the contest but just three of them were on goal.
Morgantown, which has not won seven straight contests over the Patriots, finished with 12 shots in the contest and got the scoring started early.
Senior Lilly Staples found the back of the net at the 5:44 mark of the first half when she used her left foot to sneak a ball past the drawn-out Wheeling Park keeper. The ball found the lower right corner. Railey Reeves picked up the assist on the goal as she popped the ball over a Patriot defender to Staples inside the 18-yard line.
“We really weren’t ready for the pace Morgantown was throwing at us,” WPHS head coach Tom Smith said. “We had to adjust.”
The Patriots were able to stem that early goal for MHS until the 28:29 mark when Ariana Borneo found the top left corner off a free kick 23 yards out.
“She’s a phenomenal player,” Smith said of Borneo. She’s tough to stop and she’s a lot to deal with. Her soccer IQ is just as good as he ball skills and she moves the ball and makes everybody around her better.”
Morgantown, the two-time defending state champions, finished its scoring in the second half with 24:46 left in the contest. Borneo was involved once again as she weaved through the right side of the Patriot defense and then played a beautiful cross to the center where junior Ella Miller popped the ball over the left arm of the keeper.
“Ariana is so dependable and very determined,” Frontuto said. “She is a great, great player and I am looking forward to what her career has in store.”
Wheeling Park keeper Riley Perry finished with six saves in the contest.
Morgantown returns to action on Thursday when it hosts Weir. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. and this game is part of a doubleheader with the MHS boys’ team.
By ERIC HERTER/For The Dominion Post
