More News

It's back to the Class 4A South Region final for the Bowie High School girls' soccer team. The Bulldogs eliminated Henry A. Wise, 11-0, in a region semifinal Friday afternoon in Bowie.

Senior forward Maddie Simms scored three goals and had an assist for the top-seeded Bulldogs (14-1), and Marissa Green and Kristi Hepner each added two goals. In extending its win streak to 14 games, Bowie won for the 29th consecutive time against county competition (including postseason) over the last two seasons.

The Bulldogs will collide again with Eleanor Roosevelt, which defeated Parkdale in Friday afternoon's other semifinal. The longtime rivals will play at 5 p.m. Tuesday at High Point for a spot in the state semifinals. It will be the seventh consecutive year that the Bulldogs and Raiders have met in the 4A South girls' soccer final.

Bowie scored four goals early in the first half against the Pumas (9-5) and was never threatened. Bulldogs' coach Aaron Hankey was pleased with his team's effort after a lackluster showing against Oxon Hill in a 4-0 quarterfinal win on Tuesday.

"We started to focus more in practice," said Hankey, in his first season at Bowie. "We know if you lose one game you're out. We've been working on some set pieces and it showed today."

"We weren't really passing well as we usually do," Hepner, a senior midfielder, said of the Bulldogs' win against Oxon Hill. "We really pulled it together this game. We worked on our crosses at practice and we really finished."

Following the opening goal on a header by Green, Hepner converted on a penalty shot. Simms capped a hat trick, placing a shot in the right corner for a 5-0 advantage 3 minutes into the second half.

Simms provided a centering pass for a Lisa Royter goal. Hepner followed with a 20-yard bomb that Wise goalie Deanna Waters reached up to get her hand on, but the ball was able to sneak over the goal line, extending the Bulldogs' lead to 8-0.

Six different players scored for Bowie, which handled the Pumas 10-0 during the regular season. Wise coach Jason Gordon said he hoped for a better effort.

"We had a great starting effort, we just didn't keep up that level of intensity," said Gordon, whose team has 18 victories over the past two seasons. "We didn't play to our standards, but Bowie is a good team and fundamentally sound."

The Bulldogs will turn their attention to Eleanor Roosevelt, which they defeated 2-1 during the regular season on a Hepner penalty kick late in regulation.

"It's our favorite game of the year, we always get so pumped up for Roosevelt," said Hepner. "Hopefully we'll play the best we can."