'Start acting like it': Asheville High girls soccer plays like the MAC favorite vs. Roberson

James Crabtree-Hannigan, Asheville Citizen Times
·3 min read

The Asheville High girls soccer team arrived in Skyland on Wednesday night with a 7-0-1 record, but coach Mike Flowe wasn't surprised by the hesitancy he detected in the first half.

A soft nonconference schedule meant the Cougars had hardly played a full 80-minute game this month, with five mercy-rule victories and another 6-0 win, leaving them unsure of how they would stack up against defending MAC champion Roberson.

Their second-half performance should quell any lingering self-doubt they'd been feeling.

Three second-half goals powered a 3-2 win that keeps the Cougars atop the league and, Flowe hopes, provides them a boost of confidence that they can compete with any team they face the rest of the way.

"We were kind of questioning ourselves," Flowe said. "Now, hopefully they'll see, we can score good goals against a good team. Hopefully we'll be more confident next time."

The past two seasons have been successful ones for Asheville, with a share of a conference title and a runner-up finish in the MAC, but Flowe believes this team is his best in recent years.

The roster has "a little bit of everything," he said: senior leadership, underclassmen contributors, bench depth, Division I talent and more.

"We just have a stronger bond. We're all closer," senior captain Gracie Smith said. "That helps us be better. … We just make sure to encourage people … and make sure that they're not beating themselves up."

The team's strengths were on display Wednesday — after the nervous start.

The Cougars (8-0-1, 2-0) outshot Roberson (3-5-1, 3-1) in the first half but lacked teeth in their attacks, entering halftime scoreless.

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A 59th-minute penalty kick from Smith put Asheville ahead, and freshman Peyton Case doubled the lead two minutes later.

"It played out how it was supposed to," Smith said. "We were the better team, we possessed more, and we moved the ball better after halftime."

Roberson's first shot of the half found the back of the net in the 71st, but Ashley Armstrong re-established the two-goal advantage that made an 80th-minute Rams score inconsequential.

Asheville’s Lily Foo handles the ball in the game at Roberson March 29, 2023.
Asheville’s Lily Foo handles the ball in the game at Roberson March 29, 2023.

"I thought we did a great job tonight," Roberson coach Josh Martin said. "Asheville's a very good team, they had great tactics tonight. They made it a physical game, and we're thin."

With the Rams continuing to work back toward full health – and, Martin said, players on both sides feeling the effects of their simultaneous club schedules – Flowe said the teams' May 1 rematch has the potential to be a completely different game.

Regardless, the Cougars should now understand what they're capable of.

"We're a lot stronger than we were the last couple of years," Flowe said. "So we need to start acting like it."

Asheville Cougars cheer from the sidelines after their team scored another goal in the game at Roberson High School March 29, 2023.
Asheville Cougars cheer from the sidelines after their team scored another goal in the game at Roberson High School March 29, 2023.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville High girls soccer looks like MAC favorite, beats Roberson