Lady Ads come roaring back
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FHS, 22, Ava Upshaw, fights for ball against Catholic, 16, Gaby Mendez during play, Thursday, September 18. - Carlos Reveiz, carlos@crfoto.com
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FHS, 27, Emma Claire Johnson, has possession ball, protecting it from Maryville. During play, Tuesday, Sept. 16. - Carlos Reveiz, carlos@crfoto.com
After dropping its first two district matches recently, the Farragut High School girls bounced back with a pair of victories last week.
What’s more, the Lady Admirals didn’t concede a goal to either Knoxville Catholic or Maryville as they appear back on course just in time for a big showdown with Kingston Pike rival Bearden, which comes calling Thursday night.
Kickoff for Farragut (5-4-1 overall, 1-2 in the district) and the Lady Bulldogs (9-1-1, 1-0-1) is slated for 7 p.m. at the Farragut Soccer Stadium.
“We’ll be there,” Lady Admirals’ coach Jessie Stephens Burkhart said.
After Farragut lost its first two league matches to West High (2-0) and Hardin Valley Academy (2-1), things were looking bleak for the Lady Admirals.
“Against Hardin Valley, we just didn’t play our best game and we didn’t have our best effort,” Burkhart said. “And Hardin Valley capitalized on that.”
The Lady Admirals opened the week on Tuesday, Sept. 16, by picking up their first league win as they blanked Maryville, 4-0, and had four different players find the back of the net against the Lady Rebels, coached by Steve Feather, who were looking to bounce back from a rebuilding campaign in 2024.
“Our district is tough and Steve is a good coach and no matter whether or not his team is in a rebuild, his team is going to play hard and he’s going to get the most out of them,” Burkhart said.
Kennedy Dade, Leana Maier, Meghan Shimeall and Ava Upshaw all scored for Farragut against the Lady Rebels.
The Lady Admirals returned to the pitch Thursday night and blanked the Lady Irish, 2-0, at home as Rowan Unger scored twice.
“It’s always good to win and get clean sheets,” Burkhart said.
Knoxville Catholic, which plays one of the area’s toughest schedules, received high praise from its coach, Josh Martin.
“I hate to lose but I’m really proud of my girls for their great effort at Farragut,” Martin said. “Farragut is a great team and Knoxville has great teams in both the public and private schools.
“Of course, you have Bearden and West and you have Webb in our district. You have a couple of good private school teams (Baylor and Girls Preparatory School) in Chattanooga, but Knoxville has a great mix. You can play an all-Knoxville schedule and see the best teams.”
