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A LITTLE drizzle here and there by Mother Nature didn’t stop action in the pitch from proceeding yesterday afternoon as the Mount Carmel Lady Phoenixes played host to the visiting Bishop Baumgartner Lady Obispos for IIAAG Middle School Girls Soccer League play at the Oceanview Middle School field. Relying on precision passing, great defense and aggressive attacking on offense, the Lady Phoenixes cruised easily past their opponents and picked-up the shutout 8-0 victory. The Lady Phoenixes keep their unblemished record intact with the win.

“We just went out there and played great, it was about playing as a team and knowing how to have fun,” Phoenix coach Toni-Janay Tedpahogo said.  “From day one for our team, it was always about having fun first; and then everything falls into place.”

Mount Carmel immediately got the engines running and was able to put the game’s first goal on the board after Paris “Mames” Blas found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead. The Obispos' defense found itself in some trouble a few minutes later as Lady Phoenix Destiny Castro was able to zip a shot right by goalkeeper Uriyah Tobaison to give her team a two-goal lead. Midway through the first half, Bishop looked to end the drought as Victoria Wintterly found herself open for a shot. However, a feisty Phoenix defense denied the goal.

In the 19th minute of play, Blas was able to take the ball downfield and created an open shot for teammate Therese Vaughan who converted the third goal for Mount Carmel. Minutes before the halftime signal, the duo of Blas and Vaughan hooked up once more for another goal and a 4-nil lead heading into the break. 

“We played really good today, we communicated, had fun, and played motivated throughout the match,” Blas said.

Returning from the break, Mount Carmel had no intentions of backing down and quickly went right back to work. In the 32nd minute of play, Blas notched her second of four goals to give her team a 5-0 lead. Bishop’s Kiersten Pangelinan nearly ended the Phoenix surge a few minutes later as she took the ball from midfield and set herself up for a good shot. However, Mount Carmel goalkeeper Auriene Perez was able to stop the shot. For the remainder of the game, the Phoenix's defense continued to shut out the Obispos while scoring three more goals – giving them the sizable victory at the sound of the final whistle.

Blas led Mount Carmel scoring four goals, while teammate Vaughan added two. In the losing effort, Bishop’s Tobaison picked up six saves. IIAAG Middle School Soccer League action resumes Friday with games starting at 4:30 p.m.