SHORT GAP, W.Va. — Sometimes it takes a ball finding the back of the net to open the floodgates.
That was the case for Keyser on Tuesday. After 20 minutes of back-and-forth play, Kailynn Burns broke the scoreless draw, and the Golden Tornado never looked back, pounding Frankfort with 34 shots.
Suzy Cosenza and Carlee Staggs tallied two goals each, and Keyser rolled to a 7-2 rout of Mineral County rival Frankfort on Tuesday.
“After a rough start to the season, this team showed up to play today,” Keyser head coach Dan Dawson said. “They did a really nice job of controlling the ball. They did a really nice job of trying to score goals.”
Tuesday’s scoring outburst was much-needed for Keyser.
Keyser finished last year 9-8-2, its first winning season since 2009, but the Golden Tornado (1-3) entered Tuesday with an 0-3 record after scoring just two goals over three games.
Burns’ goal in the 21st minute led to scores by Cosenza with 9:17 to play in the first half and Staggs with 6:59 on the clock to give Keyser a 3-0 advantage at intermission.
Cosenza and Staggs scored their second goals in the 43rd and 45th minute, respectively, to push the margin to 5-0.
Makya Hamilton and Dalila Riggleman added goals over the final 20 minutes of the contest.
With Staggs, Burns and Ainsley Friend back from last season’s squad in the midfield, Keyser dominated possession over the final 60 minutes. The Golden Tornado held a 34-3 edge in shots (19-3 on goal).
Staggs and Riggleman had two assists each.
“I tell the girls all the time, if we can control the midfield, we’ll be in every match,” Dawson said. “They do a much better job of passing the ball, getting it to that person who’s open for the shot.”
Reagan Getz and Adalyn Bernard scored goals for Frankfort in the second half.
Dawson credited Cadence Ravenscroft and Emma Martin on his backline for their acumen in playing the sweeper role. Keyser keeper Trulee Burns was tasked with making just one save.
With the game in hand early in the second half, Keyser was able to get all 22 of its players in the game.
“I wanted them to push as high as possible and push as hard as possible because I wanted every girl on that team to get in the game today, and all of them did,” Dawson said.
Frankfort (1-3) hosts Berkeley Springs on Thursday at 4 p.m.
Keyser is at No. 5 Hampshire (0-2-1) on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
“Hopefully, we’ll learn from this and keep progressing,” Dawson said. “They always look forward to playing Frankfort.”