By Josh McFadden | [email protected]

Last season, the Skyline girls soccer team went toe-to-toe with East for the Region 6 championship. This season, the Eagles are once again battling for top honors. 

Skyline won six of its first eight region contests. Overall, the Eagles were 9-4 as of Sept. 26. 

The Eagles actually started off region play a perfect 3-0 but fell to Murray in lopsided fashion, 4-1, on Sept. 11. The second half did the Eagles in against the Spartans. Trailing just 1-0 at the break, the Eagles were outscored 3-1 in the last 40 minutes of action. 

In Skyline’s six wins during the eight-game stretch, the defense only allowed a single goal. This gave the Eagles six shutouts on the year. The Eagles opened league play Aug. 28 with an easy 8-0 rout of West. The game was for all intents and purposes over at halftime when Skyline raced to an insurmountable 5-0 advantage. The three second-half goals merely padded the lead, as five Eagles found the back of the net. Leading the way was sophomore Zoe Garver, who troubled the West defense with three goals. Ella Kortbawi added two goals, while Ani Jenson, Jade Cornaby and Savannah Deaver each had one. 

The Eagles’ had two shutout wins in league play of the closer variety — both 1-0 nail biters. The first came Aug. 30 at archrival Olympus. Ani Jenson scored the game’s lone goal, as her score broke a scoreless halftime tie. The victory avenged a tie against the Titans the last time the two foes met last season.

On Sept. 6, the Eagles moved to 3-0 in Region 6 with another 1-0 win, this time over Highland. Jenson scored again for Skyline, but this time, her goal was in the first half. 

The back line has been strong for Skyline, and goalie Lucy Peterson has pitched 4 shutouts. Backup goalkeeper Kate Nelson contributed to shutouts over West and Logan while playing half of each game. 

It has been difficult for opponents to contend with Skyline offensive attack because the Eagles have so many options. Kortbawi had nine goals as of Sept. 26, while Jenson and Garver had eight and five goals, respectively at that point. Ten Skyline players have found the back of the net. 

After defeating East 3-1 and West 3-0 on Sept. 13 and Sept. 18, respectively, the Eagles fell to Murray again on Sept. 20. Skyline must finish in the top four of the six-team region to reach the postseason. Last year, the Eagles fell in the state quarterfinals, its earliest exit since 2009.