STATESBORO – The second-seeded Lady Blue Devils finished their 2024 season (10-7-1,8-2) after a tough loss to the Tucker High School Lady Tigers 2-1 at home Tuesday, April 16.
Both these teams were evenly matched with the Lady Tigers being 11-7-1, now 12-7-1. The Lady Blue Devils started strong defensively holding off the Lady Tigers who had a strong front line. Tucker High School senior captain Jennifer McIntosh was a dominant player leading her team in goals made per game, goals made this season, assists per game, and points made so far this season.
The Lady Blue Devils kept her at bay not allowing her to break free and put pressure on the Lady Tigers by putting the first points up on the scoreboard with a great combination goal made by freshman striker Gabriela Mendez with two minutes left in the first half of the match which ended up being the first goal of the match and the only goal scored by the Lady Blue Devils.
Although the Lady Blue Devils lost, overall they had a great season ending with a 62% win percentage all while fighting injuries and missing some key players the entire season in seniors Lydia Lippincott and Bailey Bryson and freshman Rylee Mackiewicz. A player who made their debut and stepped in to fill those empty spots was freshman Makenzie Hamer who started every game this season and scored over 10 goals while overall leading the team in points this season with 22 points.
Another constant for the Lady Blue Devils was senior goalkeeper Demia Hartwell who not only had some great saves this season but let her leadership as a senior and a team captain help lead her team to the best record they’ve had in the four years that she’s been playing as a Lady Blue Devil. According to her coaches, she gives over 200 percent every time she steps on the field and the impact she’s left on the team is an energy unmatched by anyone.
Head varsity coach Sarah Parker couldn’t have been more proud of her team and the season they had.
“I can’t be mad with how my girls played,” Parker said. “They did great out here today. I told them just go out and give one hundred percent and then some and that’s what they did.”
After graduating seven seniors this season, the Lady Blue Devils coming back next season will have some big shoes to fill, but they have a good foundation to go off of after having a great 2023-2024 season.
Graduating Seniors:
Lydia Lippincott
Bailey Bryson
Nora Schroeder
Erin Wiggins
Isabella Halaby
Eva Beth James
Demia Hartwell
Up Next
The Lady Blue Devil season might be finished, but the varsity soccer season is far from over as the Blue Devil men’s varsity team will be in action tomorrow, Wednesday, April 17 at 5 pm as they host Chamblee High School at Womack Field for the first round of the GHSA Region 1 Class 5A state playoffs.
The second-seeded Blue Devils are going into the playoff game with an 8-7-3,7-3 record, while the third-seeded Chamblee Bulldogs are going into this with a 7-9-1,4-2 record. According to varsity head coach Jared Simonin, this should be an evenly matched and exciting matchup.
Tickets for this match up will be available on the GoFan Website.
