Good Counsel thumps St. John’s in key WCAC girls’ soccer matchup

Good Counsel’s Giselle Falcon raced in behind the St. John’s defense before latching onto a long pass from Olivia Benzing. Falcon encountered two collapsing defenders and an onrushing goalie between her and the net.

Her first touch was a deft flick, arcing the ball over the goalkeeper and into the back of the net to give the Falcons a two-goal lead midway through the second half, a rare luxury in a rivalry that is perennially tight. Falcon’s score only tightened Good Counsel’s grip on what would end as a 3-0 win, ending the Cadets’ 29-game unbeaten streak.

How much of an anomaly was the 3-0 win Thursday afternoon in Olney, Md.? The Cadets narrowly topped the Falcons in the past two Washington Catholic Athletic Conference finals and only one of the past 10 games between the two teams was decided by more than one goal.

But Good Counsel ended that run after fending off early pressure from St. John’s before seizing control of the match.

“We worked really hard for this,” Benzing said. “We know it’s not over, but we put 100 percent effort in.”

“You could see [the effort] on the field,” goalkeeper Maya Cheeseboro added. “We really deserved this.”

The Cadets (6-1-3) controlled possession early and threatened to score the opening goal via their dangerous corner kicks. But the Falcons grew into the match and limited the Cadets’ ability to create chances by taking control of the midfield. The shutout marked just the second game in the past two seasons in which the Cadets failed to score.

The Falcons (10-1-2) recorded their seventh shutout of the year and haven’t conceded more than one goal in any game, including its only loss — to nationally ranked Albertus Magnus (N.Y.) on Sept. 8.

No. 3 Good Counsel found its breakthrough early in the second half after Benzing took possession of a Naiya Pearce pass and fired a shot into the top corner from just inside the penalty box. Benzing’s decisive goal was her 10th of the season. The senior added her seventh assist of the year with the long pass to Falcon, who doubled the Falcons’ lead in the 54th minute.

“She’s just a gamer. She just really understands how to go at people,” Coach Jim Bruno said of Benzing. “She takes people on constantly down the flank or in the middle, and that makes it very difficult to stop her because if she loses the ball, she recovers and wins the ball [back].”

Lilyana Laryea atoned for a missed penalty kick in the 78th minute with a goal in the game’s final seconds, ensuring Good Counsel would break its three-game losing streak against St. John’s and record its first multi-goal victory over the Cadets since 2018.

The Falcons exacted a small measure of revenge with the victory, but they want more. Good Counsel cleared a path to the top seed of the WCAC tournament with the win and could end the Cadets’ bid for a third straight league title next month.