Chattanooga Christian's Olivia Hoffman keeps her eye on the ball as Kendall Mckoon of GPS, left, and Zoe Rustand approach Tuesday at GPS.A couple of days rest did a lot of good for the GPS soccer team.
The Bruisers showed more aggression and speed Tuesday after a long weekend, defeating Chattanooga Christian 4-0 at GPS.
GPS (2-1-1) played in the Baylor Tournament over the weekend, and the three games in a 24-hour span took a toll on the Bruisers, as coach Patrick Winecoff witnessed some fading in their shots in the final match of the tournament.
Tuesday evening they were a bit sharper, and five minutes in they led 2-0 after goals by Akia Harris and Samantha Jackson. Sara Corum and Lucy St. Charles were credited with the assists.
"I think during the weekend the fatigue caught up with us," Winecoff said. "We had some easy chances that we didn't finish due to some heavy legs. Tonight we were much fresher and some of our shots had more power and were more accurate."
The lead grew to 3-0 in the 46th minute on Keyle Snyder's first goal of the season off a Jai-La Hansford feed, then stretched to a four-goal advantage when freshman Lily Hopping scored the first goal of her high school career.
Winecoff praised the Bruisers' all-around play in the second half, noting that they "knocked the ball around better."
"We definitely turned everything up a notch," he said.
CCS coach Cal Sneller saw improvement in his young Lady Chargers, who have yet to score in an 0-2-1 start.
"We're still young at some key spots," he said. "The girls are very frustrated because we have some ability, but I thought we played well.
"All I want them to do is play under control and link some passes together. There's still a lot of season left to go."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.