Country Day sophomore Coco Goldenberg scored a goal in the first half and the No. 12 seeded Cajuns defeated No. 21 St. Charles 1-0 in a Division IV girls soccer playoff game Friday at Country Day.
Goldenberg scored on a shot from about 30 yards out. The ball deflected off the shoulder of a St. Charles defender and bounced into the net with about three minutes remaining in the half.
The win advanced Country Day (9-8-4) to the regional round of the playoffs. The Cajuns will play next week at No. 5 Covenant Christian, a 7-1 winner Friday against No. 28 Highland Baptist.
This is the second year in a row for Country Day to win in the postseason. The Cajuns won two games on the road and reached the state quarterfinal round last season.
“I think we were talking more than usual, which was obviously good,” Goldenberg said.
St. Charles senior goalkeeper Mia Oncale made several impressive saves to keep Country Day from widening the lead.
With about 17 minutes remaining, Country Day senior Lila Moody drilled a shot from outside the penalty box and Oncale reached up with both hands and batted the ball over the crossbar.
“She made some terrific saves,” St. Charles coach D.J. Chauvin said. “She has strong hands. One fantastic save at the end that kept in the hunt. If they score right there, it’s a done deal. She came up clutch for us all year.”
Country Day put plenty of pressure on the St. Charles defenders early in the match. St. Charles (11-10-1) did not have many scoring chances until close to the end.
St. Charles junior Mia Ganote had a shot hit off the left post with about 20 minutes remaining. She lofted another long shot that cleared the crossbar by a few feet with about five minutes to play.
One minute later, Country Day freshman Emily Champagne stopped a long shot that bounced inside the goalie box for a save.
Country Day coach Chris Coniker said his team “stayed focused on St. Charles’ key players, keeping them from really getting involved. … That was a big maturity sign for us.”
“If we would have played like we did in the second half, in the first half, we might have had a better chance,” Chauvin said. “I feel like they didn’t feel the pressure until the last 20 minutes or so in the second half. It was too late by then. We just couldn’t get a shot. We fought hard the whole time.”