Briarwood blanks Pelham as Leib scores five goals

Published 1:58 pm Monday, March 10, 2025

By Dave Domescik

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By DAVE DOMESCIK | Staff Writer

PELHAM – The Briarwood Lions roared their way to a 9-0 victory on the road against the Pelham Panthers on Friday, March 7 at Ned Bearden Stadium in a matchup that saw two different Briarwood athletes net a hat trick.

Taylor Leib scored five goals in a transcendent performance for the Lions while Zoey Eighmy netted a hat trick to combine for eight of Briarwood’s nine scores. The only other goal came from Taylor Mathews, who scored a beauty in the game’s final moments.

The Panthers tallied zero total shots on goal and rarely threatened Briarwood’s potent attack. However, Dulse Acosta was a bright spot for Pelham all game, pacing the offense with great dribbling and poise.

The game started with a bang, with Eighmy scoring less than two minutes into the game. The Lions set the tone of the game early, dominating possession and living in the Panthers’ offensive half.

Less than six minutes into the game, Eighmy secured a brace with her second goal of the game. Eighmy displayed a tenacious pursuit of the ball defensively while directing offensive traffic, giving her teammates plenty of chances.

Briarwood closed the half with two goals in rapid succession. Leib got her scoring party started by calmly scoring from close range, while Eighmy wrapped her hat trick with another close-range score.

The Lions headed to the half up 4-0 with Pelham needing a major comeback in the second to pull off the win. The Panthers would not find any sparks of life in the second, as Briarwood continued to pour it on.

Leib scored a beauty in the 53rd minute nabbing a brace in the process. Mathews created separation with an ankle-breaking move and found Leib for a hat trick. Leib then scored again in the 63rd minute to make it 7-0 and a four-goal game for the Clemson commit.

The Lions scored their final two goals with under a minute left. Mathews scored her lone goal of the game with 53 seconds left, while Leib waltzed her way to her fifth goal with under 10 seconds left to lead to the 9-0 final.

Briarwood has outscored their opponents 19-0 in their last two games, having defeated Westminster OM 10-0 on Tuesday, March 4.

Up next for the Lions is a home game on Tuesday, March 11 at 6 p.m. against the visiting Mountain Brook Spartans. Pelham, meanwhile, will look to rebound at home against Fultondale on the same day at 5:30 p.m.

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