Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

 DES MOINES – A three-year starter and returning all-stater Molly Gervase has played good soccer against pretty much every team she has faced for the past three seasons.

The Davenport Assumption junior seems to save her best performances for Regina.

Gervase scored a pair of goals on Thursday as defending Class 1A champion Assumption returned to the state semifinals with a 9-0 win over Regina in 1A quarterfinal at Cownie Soccer Complex in Des Moines.

With her two goals on Thursday Gervase has scored in all five career matches with Regina and has six goals and a pair of assists in those matches including the game-winner in last year’s 1A title match.

“We’ve played them three years in a row and every game is a battle,” Gervase said. “It’s something I look forward to, it’s a little bit of a rivalry and the last three years have been interesting and I’m assuming we will see them again next year.”

Top-ranked Assumption got goals from four different players in the opening half while building an insurmountable 5-0 halftime lead.

Assumption (17-2) will face No. 5 Nevada in the semifinals at Noon on Friday. Regina had a three-match winning streak snapped with the loss and closed the season 7-13.

“Today we were just a little overwhelmed and we could never just quite get into our game,” Regina coach Ann Larew said. “Davenport Assumption is a very, very good team and if you are not on your top game every minute of the game it’s difficult to play with them.

It was an uncharacteristic performance Regina which had posted back-to-back shutouts in the regional semifinals and finals.

The loss ended what was a strong finish to the season for Regina, which won four of its final five matches to make its sixth straight state tournament appearance.

“Today Davenport Assumption was a better team than we were and they outplayed us and they won the game but we only see that as motivation to be back on that field next year,” Larew said. “I am quite sure that we will be.”

Gervase gave Assumption the lead 11 minutes in with her 18th goal of the season. Assumption was just getting started.

The Knights scored four goals in a span of 10 minutes to all but put the match away in the opening 30 minutes.

Shelly Moore made it 2-0 with a goal in the 21st minute.

Assumption the scored three times in a little more than two minutes to break the match open.

Carly King scores off a Moore assist and Gervase headed in a King free kick to make it 4-0.

Livy Lansing capped the first-half scoring with a goal in the 31st minute.

“Props to my teammates,” Gervase said. “They set me up on a tee most of the time and give me the opportunity and when the chance is given I put the ball in the back of the net.”

The win was the fifth straight for Assumption over Regina in the past three seasons and the first not decided by a single goal.

Assumption won a 2-1 decision over Regina in the regular season finale for both teams back on May 26.

“They are a great team and they definitely came in a lot stronger than we thought,” Gaarde said. “We were not ready for that at all.”

Thursday's rematch was never in doubt.

Sully Kelly, Lansing, Lauren Herrig and Kaylee Schriver scored second-half goals for Assumption.

“They just have so much skill and so much speed,” Larew said. “They are very, very organized, they play well together as a team and we are a very young team. I looked out there one time and I said, ‘we have seven freshman out there right now’ and that is something that we can build on.”
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