The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

The CV Bethel Stingrays dethroned the defending champions in the semifinal and kept that momentum going yesterday in the final to take the GSSSA Senior Girls Soccer title.

The Stingrays scored 2-0 win over the CC Sweeting Cobras yesterday at the Roscow Davies Soccer Field to solidify their standing as the top team in the league.

Shabina Justilien and Shanyhah Bowe scored goals for the Stingrays.

In a relatively uneventful first half, the Cobras controlled time of possession but the teams remained scoreless at the break.

Early in the second, the Stingrays squandered a pair of early scoring opportunities. After a shot from the Stingrays' hit the crossbar, CV Bethel was able to maintain control for two successive following shots, the second of which came from Justilien and bounced above the outstretched fingers of the CC Sweeting keeper.

Bowe tacked on a late insurance goal on an individual breakaway effort.

CV Bethel Head Coach, Jackson Brennen, said his team overcame a slow start to the season and progressed as the year went on, culminating in their best game when it mattered most.

"It was slow, we started slow but as the league progressed we got better and better. This was probably our best game and we couldn't be more pleased with the results," he said, "After that first half I told them they had to relax, not be nervous, but to take their time and do what we have been doing in practice. They did the things they were supposed to do - play the ball, keep it on the ground, run into the open spaces and do what we had been doing all season."

In the semifinal, CV Bethel girls dethroned the defending champions CR Walker Knights, 2-1 in extra time.

The Stingrays run was stopped short in the semifinal last season, but look to continue the trend of contending next year.

"Quite a few of the girls are graduating, but a lot are first time players and we had to develop them over a four week period, so they have come a long way," Brennen said, "We know what we have to work on for next season and we can continue to develop players. I'm confident we can do that again. I know we will be competitive, I won't guarantee a championship but we will definitely be competitive."