Published: May 26, 2008 10:13 pm            

G-Girls well rested for strong Salem team

BLUEFIELD — The Graham G-Girls have took a unique approach to their preparation for their Region IV tournament game against Salem (14-4) tonight at the East River Soccer Complex.

They rested. After a morale-boosting win over the Tazewell Bulldogs for the Southwest District tournament championship, head coach Roger Mercke gave them a long weekend off to heal their weary legs.

“It is Memorial Day. It’s a day for family,” said Graham head coach Roger Mercke. “But I told them to stretch and to loosen up during the weekend and I would assume that they did that — the dedicated girls that they are.

“It may take us a minute or two to get started tomorrow. I’m hoping my captains will get them fired up before the game and get them sweating and be ready to play when we step on the field.”

“We might be a little rusty coming off,” said senior forward Beth Mercke. “But we’re going to try to work out all the spider webs and cobwebs. I’m sure we’ll do fine.”

The 12-4-1 G-Girls admitted that they may show a little rust when kick off comes at 6 p.m. But they will not have the luxury of taking their time to get up to speed.

One of Salem’s losses this season was to AAA opponent E.C. Glass. The other three were to undefeated River Ridge District champion Hidden Valley.

“They usually have a strong district over there,” the coach said. “We finished on a good note. We’re ready to play. And hopefully we’ll have a good performance tomorrow.”

Graham is coming off the high of busting a six-game losing streak to Tazewell last Thursday.

“It gave us a bunch of confidence,” coach Mercke said. “It told us that we could actually beat a tough opponent. Finishing with two wins in the tournament and winning the tournament really lifted our spirits. The girls celebrated all night long.”

“It proved to us that if we keep our heart into the game and we play like we know how to play, we can accomplish anything...,” Beth Mercke said.

Graham has demonstrated tremendous offensive firepower all season. Led by arguably the best player in the district, Maggie Jones, and the younger Mercke, the G-Girls have at times overwhelmed their Southwest District counterparts with a barrage of goals.

“She’s got to,” coach Mercke said when asked if he expects Jones to have another big game tonight. “She’s our striker. She’s our captain. For us to succeed, Maggie’s got to play well and perform well.

“If she doesn’t score, she’s got to have assists to the right people to get the goals on the board to win the game.”

But the coach saw another reason for Graham’s domination on the score board.

“If you noticed, the Tazewell game was won at the middle of the field, who controlled the ball the best at the middle of the field,” Roger Mercke said. “Both teams that could win the middle of the field during that game got it to their forwards and were able to make a run on goal.”

Coach Mercke also received a solid performance from senior goalkeeper Brittany Hayes last Thursday. Inconsistent at times this season, she controlled the penalty area and provided one of the keys to the G-Girls’ tournament title.

“She did get focused during the Tazewell game. So hopefully she can get refocused and catch balls instead of bobble balls,” the coach said. “Everybody’s got to be on the game from here on out.”

Roger Mercke knows things will get much tougher. But his team is taking each game as it comes.

“Right now we’re just focused on Salem,” Beth Mercke said. “After Salem we’ll be more focused on the regional finals. But we’re just taking it one game at a time.”

“We’ve got to win today and win on Thursday then win again on Friday,” the coach said. “You can’t afford to lose at this juncture of the season. It’s one game at a time.”

— Contact Jed Lockett at jlockett@bdtonline.com

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.