For starters, the Mustangs fell behind Briarcrest less than five minutes into the game, when Madeline Carter put one in the net for the home team. The Saints very nearly got a second in quick succession and moments after that, Houston’s influential central defender, McKlain Jones, went off injured.
But in a match between two teams with state-title aspirations in their respective classifications, it’s always going to be next man up. For Houston, it was due in large part to two members of their promising future.
Freshman Scarlett Cowles scored the match-winner early in the second half while another freshman, Kate Wingfield, filled in admirably for Jones in the back as Houston improved to 8-0-1 with a 3-1 over their neighbors from just around the corner.
“Kate played like a beast,” said Mustangs coach David Wolff. “That’s what happens at Houston; ninth-graders step up and take spots and that just makes us a better team as a result.
“That’s the thing. They come in, it’s tentative and then they start playing in big games and playing big. They’re not freshmen anymore. They might be going to ninth-grade classes but they’re not freshmen emotionally and physically. Scarlett was that way; Wingfield was that way.”
Briarcrest (7-2-0) had the better of the play early, before Houston gradually began to play its way back into the match. The equalizer came just before halftime when Leah Freeman — who herself is only recently back from a stint on the injured list — headed home off a pinpoint free kick from Ellett Smith.
“Leah Freeman (being back) is huge for us,” Wolff said.
Cowles’ goal was a rocket that Briarcrest goalkeeper Abby Lankford had no chance to stop and Houston got its third with less than three minutes left after a hectic goalmouth scramble.
No one was quite certain who to credit for that one but it didn’t matter at that point. Houston got the victory and even in defeat Briarcrest got what it wanted too.
“We had some great opportunities that we just couldn’t put away,” said Saints coach Alexis Heinz, whose team is in the middle of a challenging stretch of games.
Briarcrest’s only other loss came a week ago, falling to a strong Collierville team by the same 3-1 scoreline. The Saints beat region rival St. Benedict on Tuesday and with the dust barely settled from Wednesday’s match, now head east for games against Knoxville Catholic and mighty Bearden, the two-time defending Class AAA champion and current No. 1 team in the nation.
Heinz is looking at that one, and the Houston game, as opportunities for her squad to get better and she feels like it’s doing just that.
“I felt like we put together an 80-minute game for the most part,” she continued. “I love playing (Houston). They’re just one of those teams that gets you ready for the rest of the season. They make you step up to have to match them. They’re the team that everybody wants to compete with ... and it makes us have to evaluate what we’re putting on the field.”
Wolff, whose team plays Jackson Christian at home on Thursday, thought his team benefited as well.
“They took it to us in the fir... Click here to read full article
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