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The air may have been chilly at the CCAC Monday evening, but Warsaw's offense was on fire as the Tigers devoured the Northern Lakes Conference rival Goshen Redskins 8-0 in the final home game of the season.
The victory gave the Tigers sole possession of the NLC crown for the first time in school history.
"Tonight's win says a lot about the character of this team," said Warsaw coach Mike Getz. "They could have come out here and played flat and still tied for the conference title with Concord. But that's not the way they are. They were very motivated tonight and played hard. They wanted to have sole possession of the NLC crown. They did not want to share it with Concord."
If Warsaw was on fire, then freshman Ashley Durgin was the match that started the blaze. She sparked the hot Warsaw offense with three goals on the night.
"Amy is just a freshman, and she is going to be a really good player," said Getz. "She is one of our strongest girls. She plays hard and she is aggressive. Tonight we moved her around a bit, but she scored from the wing and from the center of the field."
Also adding fuel to Warsaw's fire was senior Claire Beckett. Beckett scored two goals for the Tigers in the one-sided victory.
After the first half, the Tigers held a 3-0 lead over the Redskins. Then in the second half, Warsaw kicked into high gear, scoring five unanswered goals.
Durgin struck first in the second half, scoring a goal at the 37:06 mark. Then just four minutes later Aubrey Evans added to Warsaw's lead with a goal of her own.
"Claire Beckett and Aubery Evans controlled the middle out there tonight," said Getz.
Goshen postponed the Warsaw scoring attack for a few minutes, but the Tigers were not held silent for long. At the 12:36 mark, Amy Abbit upped Warsaw's lead to 6-0.
Then with 9:54 left on the clock, Durgin struck again, making the score 7-0 in Warsaw's favor. Not satisfied with two goals, Durgin completed the hat trick by scoring the last goal of the game with 5:30 left on the clock.
Goalkeeper Brittany Burgess gets credit for her seventh shutout of the season.
The Tigers and Redskins continued to battle as the sun crept lower on the horizon. However, with just over a minute left on the clock, the officals called the game due to darkness.
Along with Durgin, Beckett, Abbit and Evans, the Tigers got a goal from Ashley Kitchens. Tracey Stump, Erika Rainwater, Evans and Kitchens dished out assists in the win.
The win improves Warsaw's overall record to 13-1-2 on the season and 7-0-0 in the NLC. Its only loss of the season came to Elkhart Central in August.
The Tigers hit the field again Monday in the first game of the Bethany Christian Sectional. Warsaw plays Westview at 6:30 p.m.
"We are peaking at the right time," said Getz. "It's great to be playing this well going into the sectional next week."
WARSAW 8, GOSHEN 0
Warsaw goals -ÊAmy Durgin 3, Claire Beckett 2, Ashley Kitchens 1, Aubrey Evans 1, Amy Abbit 1
Warsaw assists -ÊKitchens, Evans, Tracey Stump, Erika Rainwater.
JV -ÊWARSAW 4, GOSHEN 0
Warsaw Goals -ÊKatie Leasure 2, Stephanie Hawley, Emily Behny
Warsaw Assists -ÊStefanie Hall, Jenifer Weingart, Brandee Ormsby, Stacey Jones
Warsaw JV - Record -Ê6-7-1, 2-2-1 NLC
