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By KEVIN ECKLEBERRY

Daily News

The quest for a four-peat is underway.

LaGrange High’s girls’ soccer team has won the past three Region 5-AAAA championships, and it opened its 2020 region schedule with an 11-1 victory over Troup on Tuesday.

The Lady Grangers have not only won three straight region titles, but with Tuesday’s win they’re 19-0 against region opponents since the start of the 2017 season.

That means the seniors on the team, Caroline Thompson, Abby Mazzolini, Anna Doerr and Hana Sato, have never dropped a region game, and there have been some tight ones along the way.

“It’s a credit to their mental toughness,” said Colin Ross, who coaches the team along with Andy Fritchley. “We’ll take on any team in the state, and we’ll give them a good game. They play for the occasion, they really do.”

Troup (2-6 overall) fell to 0-3 in region play, but there was a bright spot in the first half when Emme Thrailkill scored a goal to make it a 3-1 game.

LaGrange responded to take a 7-1 lead at the half, and it notched four more goals in the second half.

When Caroline Thompson made a penalty kick with 26:31 to play, the game ended because of the mercy rule.

Although it was a tough night for Troup, first-year head coach Caroline Jeffers is thrilled with the way the players have responded to what she’s been teaching.

“They’re great. I love them,” said Jeffers, who won a national championship as a soccer player at Florida State. “They’re really easy to coach, and they want to get better. It’s just going to take a while.”

Thompson, who has 14 goals in five games this season, led LaGrange with five goals against Troup.

Mazzolini, who is a defensive standout for LaGrange, was a big part of the offense attack against Troup and she had three goals.

Tatum Fritchley, Malone Aldridge and Sydney Ormsby each had one goal for LaGrange.