Barnes’ 7 goals lead Elgin Academy in 1A regional
Kirkland Hiawatha tried every imaginable defense in an attempt to contain Elgin Academy senior forward Ashley Barnes.
Nothing worked.
Barnes enjoyed a regional game to remember. Scoring an amazing 7 goals, which is tied for fourth place for most goals in an IHSA girls soccer game, the senior standout propelled the fourth-seeded Hilltoppers to a lopsided 9-2 win over No. 5 Kirkland Hiawatha in the play-in game of the Class 1A Genoa-Kingston regional Saturday in Elgin.
The Hilltoppers (12-8-3) advance to play top-seeded St. Edward in a semifinal game Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. in Genoa. St Edward defeated Elgin Academy 2-1 and 4-1 in two previous games this season.
With her 7 goals, Barnes has 96 career goals for the Hilltoppers, 4 short of the 100-goal milestone.
“We were a little more serious today and very focused,” said Barnes. “We have grown a ton as a team and the seniors want to go out strong. My teammates did a great job of getting the ball to me in good position to score We want to keep winning and keep playing.”
Scoring 5 goals in the first half, Barnes led the Hilltoppers to a 7-1 advantage after 40 minutes. The senior also assisted on KZ Plamondon’s goal as time expired Freshman Lauren Farbota also tallied a goal in the first half.
Barnes, who left the game with 2:29 left to play, scored her sixth and seventh goals of the contest in the second half.
“We didn’t want to keep Ashley in the game that long, but we wanted to give her a chance to get 100 career goals,” said Elgin Academy coach Shannon Walter. “We didn’t want a Derrick Rose situation and have her get hurt. Ashley is so hard to defend because she has quick feet and she can create her own shot. She can score on long shots or on shots in front of the net. She had an incredible game.”
The Hilltoppers rifled 25 shots on goals compared to 5 for Kirkland Hiawatha. Hiawatha goalkeeper Randi Maynard did manage 11 saves in a losing cause.
“We wanted to score early and get the job done,” said Walter. “We didn’t want a high pressure game. But led by Ashley we were ready to play and we were focused.”
Lauren Keneway scored both goals for the Hawks.