Frustrating was the operative word Wednesday after the Mississippi University for Women women’s soccer team dropped a 3-0 decision to Huntingdon College at Lowndes County Soccer Complex.
Frustrating because the Owls controlled much of the play but could not score. Frustrating because they had opportunities they could not finish. And frustrating because they played very well most of the day and had little to show for it.
“This game, the first half, they played extremely well,” Owls coach Catie Lyles said. “I’d probably say we held possession 75 percent of the game. So it’s very frustrating for the girls and me to have opportunities to finish, and we just couldn’t.”
The Hawks took advantage of one of their first opportunities, as junior midfielder Erin Cembrale recorded an unassisted goal just 6 minutes in to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
For the rest of the first half, there were few real chances. The Hawks generated more shots, but the Owls held the ball longer, and Huntingdon went into halftime holding that one-goal edge.
But after halftime, The W fell into bad habits, and Lyles noticed they weren’t as sharp as they were during the first half.
“In the second half we went back to the old way of just sending the ball straight down the field, and the game got a little bit away from us,” she said.
As they did during the first half, the Hawks scored early in the second. This time it was sophomore forward Joslyn Dahlberg getting the goal with assists from Cembrale and Madison Tryon.
It took just 8 minutes more for the Hawks to get an insurance goal. Tryon sent a a perfect corner kick sailing into the box, and Ashlyn Purvis sent a header into the Owls net for a 3-0 lead.
In between, The W had chances but had trouble generating shots, registering just three for the game. Hawks keeper Paige Rhody needed to make just one save to earn the win.
“Games like this are frustrating because we’re doing so well and we have opportunities, but we just didn’t finish opportunities we had,” Lyles said. “We finish the chances we get, and it’s a different ballgame.”
While the Owls struggled to finish, they did play well over much of the field.
“I think Hannah Helms played a fantastic game,” Lyles said. “She started out at center back, but she’s normally center midfield for us. Adrianna Parsons, she’s a freshman, had a good game today. I think one of our outside backs had a great game, Lizzie Truelock. Lindsey Moyle played in the center. She’s been playing on the wing, but now she’s starting to play in the middle, and she filled it well. Overall, I think they all played well.”
Truelock is a junior out of Caledonia High School, Helms is from Southaven, Moyle went to Pearl River High School in Louisiana, and Parsons is from Springdale, Arkansas.
While Lyles was frustrated by the failure to put the ball in the net, she was upbeat about the other parts of the Owls’ performance.
“Overall, though, it’s a huge improvement from the beginning of the season,” she said. “And it’s just going to keep going up from here. I think we’re starting to come together, and I think the results are going to start turning our way.”
The next opportunity for the Owls (2-2) to prove their coach right comes Sunday, when they travel to Memphis, Tennessee, to take on Rhodes College.
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