DeMotte Christian Knights

A Jasper County battle took place on Tuesday night in the first round of Girls Soccer Sectionals as DeMotte Christian defeats Rensselaer for the second time this season to advance to the semifinal. Elsie Burlingham once again stole the headline, scoring both goals in the 2-0 victory, her 49th and 50th of her two-year career. The Bombers from Rensselaer gave the Knights all they could handle, especially in the first half as the teams went to the half in a 0-0 tie. But the Knights turned up the intensity in the second half and put pressure on the Rensselaer defense. With about 20 minutes left in the match, the Knights found Burlingham just outside the goal box and she squared up a shot that dipped under the bar to give the Knights the 1-0 advantage. A few minutes later, Burlingham took another shot that went off the post, but she chased it down to tap in her second goal of the game to reach the final 2-0 score. It was another total team effort as the defense kept the Bombers at bay and allowed Eva to make some easy saves to clinch the shutout. Ainsley Wories and Lydia Frump cleaned up and controlled the middle consistently as well as they distributed the ball forward. Freshmen Hope Terpstra, Hannah Van Schouwen, and Ava Clements also put great pressure on the Rensselaer defense, especially in the second half, shifting the momentum in DeMotte Christian's favor. The Knights advance to the semifinals to face the Sectional favorite, Covington Trojans on Wednesday night.