No. 10 Heritage hands No. 1 Hough first loss in battle of Huskies
Friday settled an argument. Huskies howl loudest in Wake Forest.
Behind goals from Allison Travis, Bryanna Parks and Erin Coleman, No. 10 ranked Heritage handed No. 1 Hough its first loss of the season, a 3-0 final in a late season non-conference match.
There may not be a hotter team in the state right now than Heritage which picked up its tenth consecutive win with the statement victory.
The home-standing Huskies left little doubt over the entirety of the match dominating possession of the ball and limiting Hough's attack with its back line of Carly Lashley, Ella Bjorklund, Jane Vukovich, and Audrey Hatch between the pipes.
Hatch stood tall when Hough was able to generate opportunities to put the ball on frame via set pieces. The junior keeper recorded a pair of dazzling stops where she punched the ball out of danger.
In the 26th minute, Heritage got a set piece of its own, a free kick from the foot of Travis that skipped in off the keeper for a 1-0 lead that would hold through the opening 40.
Two minutes into the second half, Travis found space on the flank and located Parks who finished upper left for a 2-0 lead that assured that momentum would stay on the home side for the remainder of the match.
For Travis, the assist was the 32nd of her illustrious career and tied her for the all-time lead in program history with Hayley Boyles. Career assists will be the first offensive record in school history that Boyles will be unseated from as she currently holds records in goals, assists and total points for both a career and single season.
Coleman dropped the dagger in the 85th when Landry Boyles sent a ball towards the net that was cleared off of the end line by Hough's Savannah Bishop. The clearing attempt found the foot of Coleman who returned a shot that would find the back of the net for the 3-0 advantage.
Heritage improves to 13-1-2 with the victory. In the opening two weeks of the season, the Huskies posted a 3-1-2 record but have been flawless since. In the midst of a 10 game winning streak, this is the seventh time that Heritage has posted a clean sheet.
Having already secured the Northern Athletic Conference title with a 10-0 record, the Huskies will embark on the NAC Tournament next week before partaking in a non-conference match with Chapel Hill and the Central Carolina Cup prior to postseason play.
Hough falls to 14-1-1 with the defeat. In the Queen City Conference, the Huskies hold a perfect 8-0 record. League matches with West Mecklenburg and West Charlotte await next week before a Friday non-conference match with Charlotte Catholic.
