Lady Cards face off at jamboree

With shin guards securely fastened and mouthpieces in place, the Corning High varsity field hockey team took the pitch over the weekend against a host of foes, in the league jamboree in Chico.

In all, the lady Cards played seven 25-minute games, winning one, losing five and tying one.

The lone victory came in a 2-0 win over Bella Vista, with Yasmeen Lomeli and Nicole Mason finding the back of the cage for the Cardinals.

Corning's other goal came in a 2-1 loss to Rio Vista, off the stick of Mayra Diera.

The other losses were at the hands of Lassen (2-0), Chico (3-0), Pleasant Valley (1-0) and Davis (3-0).

The Cardinals and Yuba City played to a scoreless draw.

Keepers Bethany Vader and Katlyn Huntley were in the mix all day, with Vader turning aside 13 shots and Huntley kicking aside 10.

"I use the jamboree to have the players learn to work with each other and grow," said Corning coach Teresa Lamb. "We have nowhere to go but up."

The coach gave high marks to the stick work of Anna Nelson, the hustle exhibited by Karlie Jennings, to Jenny Mendoza for showing improvement throughout the day on defense, and to Sam Bobadilla for her aggressiveness and growth at the mid position.

"Our stick work is a strength; we just have to work on confidence," Lamb reported. "The defense improved each game by marking and not being pushed in by the other team."

Corning opens its regular season today, hosting Lassen.