After spending most of the evening playing from behind, the McCracken County Lady Mustangs would dig deep in their second matchup of the season against the Marshall County Marshals, coming up with a pair of late goals to steal a 3-2 victory and pull themselves level in the standings with their district rivals.
“I’m extremely proud of the girls tonight,” said McCracken County head coach Mike Lane, following the win. “It’s tough to come back from being behind against anybody, let alone a tough Marshall County team. There was a lot to play for, so we knew it was going to be just as hard as the last time we played them.”
The Lady Mustangs found their breakthrough late in the second half, rallying from a 2-1 deficit with less than 10 minutes remaining. After struggling to break down the Lady Marshals’ deep-lying defense for most of the match, with Angelie Mendoza providing their lone goal, two of their most prolific scorers delivered when they needed them most.
After an effort from Maddie Ault found the back of the net to level things at two apiece with eight minutes to play, Emma Hudson would put one past the Lady Marshals again just two minutes later, setting McCracken on their way to the 3-2 victory.
“They showed a lot of grit tonight,” Lane continued. “That’s something we’re going to have to have as we’re getting later into the season and towards the playoffs, and they showed that they have plenty of it here tonight.”
Long before the Lady Mustangs rallied, it wouldn’t take long for the Lady Marshals to find their way in front, taking control of the scoreboard inside of three minutes. Having defended a dangerous opportunity in their own half just a moment prior, a corner kick at the other end from Maeci Moryl would careen into the net, giving Marshall the early 1-0 edge.
Over the remainder of the first half, Moryl’s goal would stand alone as the difference, with steady defense guiding the Marshals to a 1-0 lead at the break. Once play resumed, Marshall would double up through Kylie Spears and looked to be on track for a regular-season sweep of the Lady Mustangs.
However, once Mendoza pulled the goal straight back at the other end, the Lady Mustangs continued to pour forward down the stretch in search of the equalizer. Keeping the pressure on Marshall’s back line, the Lady Mustangs would make the most of their late opportunities through Ault and Hudson to fire themselves in front, before locking things down defensively to secure the 3-2 victory. For Lane, the difference for the Lady Mustangs late came through an uptick in their aggression on the attack.
“It was all about what we call ‘playing downhill’,” Lane said, on the Lady Mustangs’ late surge. “We just wanted to keep the pressure on them, keep the ball moving forward, and always be on the attack. We told them that whole time that the goals were coming, and they did.”
The Lady Mustangs will be back in action this weekend for a doubleheader, hosting Evansville F.J. Reitz and Evansville North on Saturday afternoon.