Columbus North’s Anna Donica makes a move while Columbus East’s Nadia Harris comes up behind her at the BCSC Soccer Complex, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023.
Paige Grider | For The Republic
Few rivalries are as intense as the battles between Columbus East and Columbus North.
As a result, competitiveness usually is at its highest when the two rivals meet in any sport. That was the case again when the girls soccer teams met on a steamy Wednesday evening.
For the second consecutive year, the Bull Dog and Olympian defenses were at their best. The teams played to a 0-0 draw for the second straight year.
Shots were at a premium in this one. North (1-1-2) managed just six, while East (0-3-1) had four shots. The Bull Dogs put two shots on goal to one for the Olympians.
North looked like it might take the lead in the 56th minute when Paige Mora got the ball at the top of the box. But Mora’s shot bounced off the right post, leaving the match scoreless.
After that, the Bull Dogs had a couple of corner kicks, but were unable to capitalize.
“I felt like both teams played pretty well in the back. Neither team gave much in behind the back line,” North coach David Young said. “I think possession-wise, our ability to connect passes to the midfield was excellent tonight. Frankly, it’s two games in a row that we’ve been able to control possession. I’ll look at the film and get the breakdown, but the possession was in our favor by a pretty good margin. We controlled much of the game. Much of the the game was in our attacking half, and we’re a young team with young frontrunners, and we have to figure out how to score.”
East had the only dangerous chance in the first half. Ruth Federle had a 1v1 opportunity with North goalkeeper Erica Kaufman in the 14th minute, but put a shot over the crossbar. The Bull Dogs had a moderate opportunity in the 40th minute, but Olympians keeper Emily Stiles smothered a shot by Rachel Fulp from the corner of the box.
North outshot East 3-2 in the opening half, with each team putting one shot on goal.
“We had a couple of really good opportunities offensively, but I think as far as the heart and the grit we showed, we really played with no subs except for one the whole entire game, and the girls just bent but never broke. I thought we played really well defensively,” East coach Ilya Schwartzman said. “I thought we marked well and supported each other very well, so I’m really proud of the effort. I thought Kate did a good job in the goal. The back four was strong. It was a really good effort by everybody.”
The game was moved back an our later in the day Wednesday because of the excessive heat on Wednesday. The East-North boys game that was scheduled for tonight has been postponed to Saturday.
Both girls teams are back in action on Saturday. The Olympians will play at Park Tudor in a game that has been pushed back from 11:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. (3 p.m. JV), and the Bull Dogs will visit Floyd Central in a game that has been moved up from 7:45 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. (Noon JV)
