On Thursday evening, the Cornersville Lady Bulldogs picked up an important District win on the pitch when they defeated the Richland Lady Raiders 3-0 at home.

Richland had beaten Cornersville 2-1 in their previous meeting on Aug. 20 and were sitting in second place in the southern division of the District 11-A-AA standings.

The Lady Bulldogs, however, rained on the Lady Raiders' parade on Thursday and built a 2-0 lead in the first half before tacking on another goal early in the second stanza en route to recording their third straight victory.

Momentum

"It was really good for our momentum because we've got to play three District games next week. We're finally healthy now and it's good to have some momentum," said CHS coach Lindsey Browning. "We've been more mentally prepared the last three games and are learning how to win. It's new for Cornersville to win soccer games so these three wins have given us some confidence."

Despite being without the services of senior midfielder Jessica Dunn, who was forced sit out the contest due to a concussion, the Lady Bulldogs outshot Richland 12-8 overall.

Senior striker Amala Elder scored two goals and attempted a team high five shots to lead Cornersville's offensive attack, while Gloria Palma recorded an assist. Anna Claire Foster, Ashley Orr, and Autumn Sheroski each attempted three shots apiece for CHS as well. The Lady Raiders (3-4, 3-2 District) were also credited with an own goal in the first half.

In the groove

"Amala is finally finding her groove. She was actually trying too hard early in the season and was getting frustrated. She's started to relax some and it's coming naturally to her again," said Browning.

Lady Bulldog goaltender Hope Taylor turned in a strong performance and tallied seven saves to notch her third shutout of the season.

Cornersville caught a break early in the contest when a Richland defender accidently redirected a crossing pass by Orr into her own net in the fifth minute while attempting to clear the ball away from the Lady Raider goal.

After the Lady Raiders were called for a foul inside the goalie box, Elder gave CHS a 2-0 lead in the 25th minute by lining the penalty kick into the upper left hand corner of the net.

Third goal

Elder then stretched the Lady Bulldogs' lead to 3-0 early in the second half when she took a pass from Palma on the right side of the field and curled a shot into the upper left hand corner of the net in the 43rd minute.

That proved to be all the offense that Cornersville would need, as Taylor recorded four saves over the final 30 minutes to secure the shutout victory for the Lady Bulldogs.