Saxony Lutheran girls soccer puts emotions, rust aside to breeze past Farmington in opener

For all intents and purposes, the Saxony Lutheran girls soccer team should be behind the eight ball. Maybe it is. But on Friday it didn't show it.

With just four days of full-team practices under their belt, the defending Class 1 state champion Crusaders dropped Farmington 4-0 in the season opener at Saxony Lutheran High School, showing few signs of rust or a hardwood hangover as Tess Daniel scored a brace in the first half to spark her team.

Eleven Saxony soccer players -- including Daniel -- have been away from the soccer field, a bit preoccupied, one might say, by a run to the basketball state championship last Saturday. Those players -- half of the Crusader soccer roster -- did not put their foot on a ball until this week. From a soccer perspective, it wasn't an ideal way to open up a title defense, but in game No. 1 it didn't seem to matter. Instead, the team just picked up where it left off last spring.

Saxony Lutheran forward Grace Mirly shields a Farmington defender from the ball during a 4-0 season-opening Crusader win on Friday at Saxony Lutheran High School in Jackson, Missouri.JOSH MLOT ~ Southeast Missourian

"It's the first game," coach Garrett Fritsche said. "I'm very happy with how things turned out. A lot of the older ones, they remembered exactly what we talked about last year. It's easier to start -- we're a little step ahead of where we were last year.

"They pick up a lot of things. A lot of these girls have high IQs, so that helps. They remember what they've been taught."

Saxony Lutheran is putting a positive spin on the absences. Even though a large chunk of the team wasn't getting soccer work in, the group that was on the field got extra attention, which meant more hands-on coaching time with the program's younger contingent. That could pay off in a big way down the line.

"Honestly, it's been easier," Fritsche said. "The reason is most of the 11 missing are returning players, so we were able to spend a lot of time with the incoming freshmen and the sophomores. I think we had four seniors here the first few weeks and they helped lead practices and teach the girls. We were able to do a lot of fundamentals. Personally, I think that helps a lot. Yes, you want all your girls the whole time, but it helps us really break down those young girls coming in, so we didn't miss them too much.

"It's going to be huge. We only have 22 girls, so it's really hard to get them playing time on JV. We've got to get them as much time [as possible] out here."

When the group was reunited, no one skipped a beat. Fritsche said the basketball contingent wasn't hung up on its state disappointment, seamlessly transitioning onto the soccer field and, for many of them, into their final season as high school student-athletes.

Rather than dwell on a state championship loss, the girls threw themselves right into soccer.

Saxony Lutheran's Cassidee Wunderlich heads the ball toward goal during the first half of a 4-0 season-opening win over Farmington on Friday at Saxony Lutheran High School in Jackson, Missouri.JOSH MLOT ~ Southeast Missourian

"Honestly, they didn't miss a beat," Fritsche said. "I gave them off until Wednesday if they wanted to, and every girl but one girl showed up on Monday, and she had a prior commitment. That right there told me they were motivated and ready to go. That kind of sets the tone right there when I see that -- 'OK, these girls are ready.' For 11 of these girls it's their final sports season in high school, so they're out here to work, and you'll be able to tell all season."

And while the final game of the winter season may have brought heartbreak, the spring brings into focus a very legitimate opportunity to still celebrate this year. The squad brings back every player from last year's championship group, and returns senior Maddie Brune -- the ship's captain in the midfield -- from an ACL injury that forced her to watch 2015's celebration from the sideline.

On Friday, Brune was back on the field bossing the midfield and pushing her team forward. The rest of her basketball teammates were there as well, melding easily with the other pieces of the team and generally controlling the game against visiting Farmington, even if the group has been limited in practice thus far.

"Really, these first three weeks -- until Monday -- we didn't have half the team, with basketball [still going on]," Fritsche said. "We really only had four days to put stuff together, and all we put together so far is touches, fundamentals, things like that. We haven't even messed with a whole lot of possession.

Saxony Lutheran forward Laurel Mueller tries to control a ball under pressure from a Farmington defender. Mueller scored a goal as the Crusaders opened the season with a 4-0 win over the Knights Friday at Saxony Lutheran High School in Jackson, Missouri.JOSH MLOT ~ Southeast Missourian

"The focus today was a lot of just going out and giving the effort we need. Possession was obviously a key -- it's going to be every game -- and then winning 50-50 balls. It's making sure we control the game and we control the game anyway we can."

The Crusaders (1-0) did those things, using their speed and athleticism out of a 4-4-2 formation, often attacking the wide spaces in the attacking third before putting the ball on goal or centering it back in front.

One of the basketball seniors, Daniel, did the damage early, sending the ball to the back of the net just four minutes in and putting the home side up 1-0 to begin its season.

It didn't take long for her to strike again, scoring her second goal of the afternoon in the ninth minute to make things 2-0.

"She played well that first half," Fritsche said. "She can score when she's put in the right position. She can really do some damage, with her speed especially. ... She's a good player and I'm glad we got the [good] start for her with those two goals. I expect a lot of that this year."

Laurel Mueller then made it 3-0 at halftime with a 31st-minute goal.

Brianna Mueller put the icing on the cake early in the second half, sending a curling ball into the top of the goal from 20 yards out to put Saxony Lutheran up 4-0.

Farmington (0-1) had a few moments of attacking pressure in the second half, but really only put a dangerous ball toward goal once, when Knight forward Taylor Schwartzkopf -- the visitors only true threat on the day -- put a shot from inside the 18-yard box across the face of goal from right to left, skipping it just outside the far post.

Saxony outshot Farmington 13-4, allowing only one shot in the first half, and took seven corner kicks to the Knights' two.

But the day wasn't as much about the final score line as it was a new start -- on a fresh pitch of grass, no less -- for a group quickly moving on from last week's heartbreak so that it can try to recapture last season's joy.

Saxony Lutheran is back on the field at Fredericktown on Tuesday.