The first-round elimination in last year’s state tournament put a quick halt on Indian River’s girls’ soccer team when they fell to Archmere, but the team bounced back this year with an all-too-familiar runaway game to begin the season. The Lady Indians conquered Cape, 6-0, on Tuesday night in a Henlopen Conference opener.

Indian River pulled out to an early lead as senior co-captain Sarah Purdum knocked in a shot in the 16th minute, courtesy of sophomore mid Morgan Warrington. Only a minute later, midfielder Caitlin Forte scored another for Indian River.

Fellow sophomores Michaella Evans and Marisa Atkins each contributed a goal before the half, each assisted by Warrington’s sister Miranda. Morgan Warrington knocked in a goal of her own, early in the second half, and Forte snagged the final goal of the game in the 49th minute.

Purdum, who traditionally operated as part of the Lady Indians’ defense, was well under way in fulfilling her role this year at midfield as she picked up the first score of the year.

“Stepping up from defense is definitely a different feel,” she said. “Then, I saw the field. Now that I’m playing mid, I see a lot more of the ball and can transition from side to side. I like it a lot.”

Despite having only four seniors on the roster, Purdum noted that the team is coming together quickly.

“The team is definitely young,” she said, “but we have speed; more than we ever have in the past. Last year, we lost a lot of our defenders, and the weather gave us a short pre-season. We weren’t sure how we’d reconstruct our defense, but it has turned out well. Alex [Roenke] is doing a great job.”

Forte, who debuted on the team last year as a freshman, reclaims her spot at forward/mid. She had two goals and two assists in Tuesday’s victory.

“It was huge for us to start the season off with a win,” she said. “Coming out and showing everyone a good start is important. We want them to know that we’re coming out for real, and we have a lot of talent coming up. We have a lot of strength across the field. We’re solid back there in goal and with our defensive mids. I know if I make a mistake, they have my back.”

IR head coach Steve Kilby found comfort in the skill he has returning to the team.

“It’s a blessing that when I lost a senior keeper, I had a sophomore step in who showed good composure tonight. In our pre-season matches, she played well, and the team is fortunate to have her.”

His established midfield helped to control the tempo of the game.

“[Evans] has a lot of vision,” he added. “She’s a great ball handler on top of defense, and she works well with the Warringtons, and also found Purdum and Forte when she needed to.”

Junior defender Laurren Parramore showed that she could run with the best of them, despite her short time with the team.

“She’s a hustler,” Kilby said. “She does not have a long soccer pedigree, but her work rate’s incredible. She’s physical and she listens, and she’s done a great job stepping in and helping us out.”

As for the night’s star, Kilby is convinced he has one of Delaware’s finest.

“Caitlin Forte is one of the top players in state as a sophomore,” he said proudly.

After last month’s unexpected snowstorm, Kilby was discouraged about the team’s lack of practice time but was satisfied to see they still came to play.

“The way the pre-season went,” he said, “we lost five days of being outside. We really struggled with aspects of our play days and scrimmages, but tonight it looked OK. This is what we need every week from the girls.”

The Lady Indians will travel to Dover this Friday, March 27, for a 6 p.m. match, then return home to host Polytech on Tuesday, March 31, at 7 p.m.