Lady Sandite Soccer edged out 1-0 by Muskogee

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The Charles Page High School Girls' Soccer Team (0-3) hosted undefeated Muskogee High School (4-0) in a Thursday night non-district match at Memorial Stadium. The visitors scored midway through the first half and held on for the one-goal shutout.

Muskogee came out hot from the start with shots from Terah Bryson and Goldie King before Alexandra Hughart finally connected for the lone goal of the game in the 20th minute. The Lady Sandites didn't get off any close shots in the first half, hampered by a heavy headwind that pinned them in their own box for most of the half. Goalkeeper Abigail Banks hauled in five saves.

The Sandites owned most of the offense in the second half with Eliska Dodokova striking first in the 45th minute. Muskogee keeper Hailey Miller was sharp throughout the half, however, recording five saves against shots from Dodokova, Kyndal Zicker, Sybil West, and Madison Metcalfe for a clean sheet. Muskogee only got off one shot in the second half, from Kylie McKinney, but Banks hauled in her sixth save of the night.

Miller recorded her second clean sheet of the season, but Banks had the most saves and held the Roughers to a season-low offensively. Muskogee previously averaged four goals per game. 

Both teams will return to action Friday at the Stillwater Cup. Sand Springs will play Enid (0-2) at 12:00 p.m. in Pioneer Stadium, while Muskogee will play Verdigris (2-1) at 3:20 p.m. on Southeast Colvin Field at Oklahoma State University. 

Bixby Lady Spartans rout Sand Springs 5-0 at home

By: Virgil Noah, Staff Writer

It was a rough night for the Charles Page High School Ladies' Soccer Team (0-2) as they ran into a Bixby High School squad (3-0) who was very sound on both ends of the pitch. The Lady Spartans scored early and often throughout the course of the game en route to a 5-0 victory. 

SEE RELATED: Jeffus brothers lead Sandite Soccer to first win of season 2-1 over Bixby

Junior defender Caroline Carson got Bixby on the board in the 8th minute with a header that trickled off the fingers of Lady Sandite goalkeeper Abigail Banks. Senior forward Kyndal Zicker countered for the Sand Springs but her shot on goal went straight to Bixby goalkeeper Maddie Dees. Zicker's shot was one of just three on the night for Charles Page as Bixby's stifling defense frustrated the Lady Sandite attack for the duration of the match. 

Banks and the defense kept the visitors off the board for almost the remainder of the first half, with Banks making several impressive saves, but with just 0:32 left in the first half Lacy White found the back of the net to give her side a two goal lead heading into the locker room.  

The second half saw more of the same, with Taylor Pease and Mary Swain both scoring goals off of shots to the far post hitting iron and bouncing in. Kaitlyn Asher rounded out the scoring with a goal in the 62nd minute.  

The Lady Sandites will return to action on the 23rd after a Spring Break hiatus when they host the Muskogee Lady Roughers (1-0).

Kyndal Zicker scores lone goal in 4-1 season-opening loss to Bartlesville

First-year Head Coach Matt Miller looks on during a pre-season scrimmage. (Photo: Scott Emigh).

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The Charles Page High School Girls' soccer team (0-1) started off the season with a 4-1 loss to the Bartlesville Bruins in a non-district Friday night matchup at Memorial Stadium.

The Lady Sandites are in their first season under Head Coach Matt Miller. They went 9-6 last year and graduated two of their top-four scorers, but retained senior forwards Kyndal Zicker and Megan Deshazo who combined for twenty-five goals. The Lady Bruins also went 9-6 last season.

The game was a slow starter for both teams, but once the visitors got going, they didn't slow down. Junior keeper Abigail Banks stayed busy all night, hauling in four saves in the first twenty-minutes before senior forward Kearstin Littau finally struck paydirt midway through the first half. Next to net was one was Kelsie Eason with an assist from Danielle Lorson for the 2-0 Bruin lead.

Bartlesville wasted no time in the second half as Littau scored just five minutes in, then made it a hat trick eight minutes later. The lone goal of the game for Sand Springs came on a penalty kick by Zicker.

The girls will return to action Thursday at 6:00 p.m. in a non-district home game against Bixby (1-0). Their first district game won't take place till the 28th at Booker T. Washington (1-0).

Kendal Zicker signs LOI to play college soccer at Northeastern State University

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Seven Sand Springs High School students signed letters-of-intent Wednesday morning in the Ed Dubie Field House, bringing the grand total of college-bound athletes from the Class of 2017 to fourteen.

Sand Springs has two softball players, two cross-country runners, two baseball players, one basketball player, three football players, one volleyball player, and two soccer players all headed to the next level.

Kendal Zicker accepted a soccer scholarship to Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. The Riverhawks are coached by Chase Wooten and are an NCAA Division-II team competing in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. They finished the 2016 season with a 13-5-1 record, falling in the first round of the MIAA Championship. Zicker was the second-highest scoring player on the 2016 Lady Sandite team with 12 goals and two braces. She was an Offensive MVP and was named to the All-District team. The Lady Sandites went 9-6 last season. 

Megan Deshazo signs LOI to play college soccer at Northern Oklahoma College

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Seven Sand Springs High School students signed letters-of-intent Wednesday morning in the Ed Dubie Field House, bringing the grand total of college-bound athletes from the Class of 2017 to fourteen.

Sand Springs has two softball players, two cross-country runners, two baseball players, one basketball player, three football players, one volleyball player, and two soccer players all headed to the next level.

Megan Deshazo accepted a soccer scholarship to Northern Oklahoma College in Tonkawa. The Tonkawa Mavericks participate in the NJCAA and are coached by Juan de Dios Castillo. They finished the 2016 season with a 19-2-1 record and fell in the second round of the District Tournament. Deshazo scored a team-high 13 goals in the 2016 season with a hat trick against East Central and a double-hat trick against Putnam City North. She was the CPHS Offensive MVP and the 2016 Sandite Pride Offensive Player of the Year. The Lady Sandites went 9-6 last season.

Lady Sandites Dye, Eardley, Foster win State Cup, head to Regionals in NC

By: Virgil Noah, Marketing Director

Despite not making the playoffs this year for the Charles Page High School girls soccer team, three Sandites are still racking up some hardware.

Missouri University of Science and Technology signee Kayla Foster, Oral Roberts University signee Brooklyn Eardley, and Northeastern State University signee Madison Dye each play for West Side Alliance club team '98 Girls Red. Their team went 6-2-1 on the season, which placed them second in the Regional Premier League and they won the State Cup 2-1 over Oklahoma FC '98.

Next up are the Southern Regionals in South Carolina. West Side Alliance has been a fixture in the soccer community since 1992, and has divisions throughout Northeast Oklahoma and the greater Tulsa Metro area including a division in Sand Springs, located at the River City Parks.

Foster said, "I'm so proud of my team and all that we have accomplished throughout our soccer careers. We started at the bottom and finished as state champs...I would like to thank my coach Ryan Bush as well for sticking with us and putting up with our attitudes. He's the best coach in the state...Thank you to my WSA family for building me into the person I am today."

Bush was an All-State performer and four year letterman for Charles Page, and currently coaches the ORU Men's soccer team where he was a two-year standout. Bobby Behrens, the two-year Sandite Girl's soccer coach and Class of 2010 Sand Springs graduate, will be headed to join Bush's staff as an assistant coach.

Foster and Eardley were also selected to the 2016 Oklahoma Soccer Coaches Association 6A All-State soccer team. Foster was unable to play due to a hamstring injury she has been nursing, but Eardley was able to play and represent Charles Page. The game resulted in a 3-3 draw.