At least for now, Erica Anglade and Seoul American’s girls sport the best record on South Korea’s high school soccer pitch.

Anglade scored her 13th goal of the season off a pass from Angye Law and the Falcons (7-0) handed Osan American its first loss in 11 matches this season 1-0 Saturday at Cougars Field.

“It could have gone either way,” Falcons coach Lori Rogers said of the battle between Korea’s top two teams. It was a slow-paced, physical matchup on Osan’s undersized pitch in which both sides had their chances, Rogers and Cougars coach Sung Plourde said.

“Both teams were out there fighting. We had 16 shots. We just couldn’t get one in the right spot,” Rogers said.

“We had some opportunities. We just couldn’t finish,” Plourde said.

Seoul American struck almost immediately after the opening whistle on a chilly, cloudy morning. Senior Angye Law’s crossing pass from the right side found its way into the goalmouth, and Anglade banged it into the net off a scramble in front.

From there, it was a defensive struggle. “We just stood our ground a bit more,” Rogers said.

Osan fell to 8-1-2 in the first of two meetings between the sides within eight days; they kick off again at 9 a.m. Saturday at Falcon Field on Yongsan Garrison’s South Post.

And in the rematch, the Falcons will have junior striker Sarah Eades back in the lineup; she missed Saturday’s match due to family obligations.

“Without Sarah, we were missing some power and control in the middle,” Rogers said, adding that sisters Jessica and Katie Bolander helped fill that role. “We’ll get them at home with a full roster. We’ll see what happens.”

“With Sarah in the lineup, they’ll be better offensively,” Plourde said. “And it will be more difficult playing on their field. It’s wider. And with their speed, that will make a difference.”

How do Osan’s and Seoul’s teams compare with past Cougars and Falcons squads? Rogers and Plourde said they think very favorably of each.

“They’re a strong team,” Rogers said of Osan. “If they stay on top of their game … they have a very good chance” at May’s Far East Class A tournament at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan.

“They’ve always been competitive (but) they’re a bit stronger than they were last year,” Plourde said of the Falcons.

Pair of juniors keeping Seoul, Daegu boys on winning trackOne current and one former Seoul American boys soccer player are helping make the difference for their respective squads as the first month of the season comes to a close.

Matt Nutter, converted from defense to midfield, assisted on three goals as the Falcons boys blanked Osan 6-0 on Saturday. Seoul American improved to 5-1-1.

“He’s a really solid defender, but we moved him to midfield to try some things out,” Seoul American coach Robert Victoria said. “He’s not flashy, but he’s consistent, he’s solid.”

At Camp Henry, former Falcons midfielder Phillip Cox notched two goals in the first seven minutes and assisted on another to power Daegu American’s boys past Korea International 5-3. The Warriors are 3-4 thus far. Cox transferred from Seoul American last spring.

“He’s a team leader. He’s stepping up his game, really been working hard. He’s been working on his finishing. You can run all the way down the field, but it doesn’t count if you don’t finish,” coach Larry Knierim said.

Zama track team wins again; Kubasaki girls edge club teamTwo meets, two team titles for Zama American during the young Kanto Plain Association of Secondary Schools track season.

The Trojans boys and girls beat Christian Academy In Japan by respective team scores of 71-60 and 81-37 in a quadrangular meet at Yokota High School in Japan, which also featured Nile C. Kinnick.

Again leading the way on the boys’ side was junior distance runner Andrew Quallio, who won the 800 in 2 minutes, 3.8 seconds, the mile in 4:43 and the two-mile in 10:05.1. He came within 4 seconds of the school record for the mile and 7 seconds in the two mile.

At Camp Foster on Okinawa, defending Far East Girls Class AA Soccer Tournament champion Kubasaki endured a tough test, against Ryuho, a women’s club team, and came out on top 2-1 on two goals by Bridget Ramirez; she has seven this season.

The way Ryuho passed the ball and moved quickly to mark the Dragons defensively impressed Kubasaki coach Terry Chumley. “That’s a good team,” she said. “I’d like to play them every week, if they could.”

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