Freshmen lead Elgin to first win over Larkin

Those in attendance Tuesday at Memorial Field got a glimpse at what the future of Elgin girls soccer might look like.

Freshmen Melissa Roberts and Alexis Sprague each scored as the Maroons beat rival Larkin, 2-1, in Upstate Eight Conference play.

"Those two are our leaders," Elgin coach Cesar Rosales said. "Lexi is a captain. I can't see Missie not being a captain next year. They showed nothing but pressure the whole game. It's good to see the freshmen really stepping up."

Larkin coach Ken Hall said the Maroons had never beaten the Royals before.

Roberts and Sprague, along with senior Nohemi Farfan, controlled the midfield most of the game, allowing Elgin (2-4 UEC) to earn its second victory of the season.

With 10:28 remaining in the first half, Roberts brought down a Sprague throw-in in the penalty area and beat Larkin goalkeeper Dianna Hernandez for a 1-0 lead.

Sprague gave the Maroons a 2-0 advantage with 32:08 left in the second half with a right-footed blast from 25 yards out off a feed from Farfan.

"I was so nervous all day, just so excited," Sprague said. "This was a huge game for us."

The Royals (1-11, 0-4) tried to rally and cut the deficit to 2-1 with 13:19 remaining. After a long free kick from Rosa Camarena was stopped and put over the crossbar by Elgin goalkeeper Jessica Bahena for a corner kick, Camarena bent the corner into the back of the net to give Larkin a chance. The Royals nearly tied it with 5:45 left when ana Medina's shot toward the far post just missed wide and Kaylee Sullivan nearly ran onto it for what would have been an easy tap-in.

"We came out a little too tentative," Hall said. "They came out very strong, pressured us all over the field and took the game to us. We didn't adjust to it."