Every high school soccer team in Mississippi spends time in practice working on penalty kicks, just in case they need them to win an overtime shootout in a key region or playoff game.

The Warren Central Vikings are doing that, plus getting plenty of real world experience.

The Vikings have attempted a penalty kick in five of their six MHSAA Region 2-6A games. They’ve converted seven of their nine chances and scored a follow-up goal on one of the misses.

It’s mostly an odd statistical quirk, but it has helped Warren Central (14-1-2, 6-0 Region 2-6A) close in on a second consecutive region championship. It can clinch it by winning on the road at Ridgeland (7-8, 4-1) on Tuesday.

Warren Central will also host Richland Saturday at 1 p.m.

“That is strange. It comes and goes. I’m glad we’re taking penalty kicks. In the past we’ve given up penalty kicks,” Warren Central coach Greg Head said. “What it does mean is we’re getting the ball into that attacking third a lot more this year than we have in the past. When you do that a lot more there are going to be more fouls.”

Penalty kicks in soccer are not uncommon, but also are not an every-game occurrence. They are awarded for fouls or handballs that occur inside of the 18-yard box in front of the goal, so it’s mostly a situational play.

Warren Central attempted one penalty kick in its first 10 games. Then it was awarded four in a 7-0 win over Vicksburg High on Dec. 3 and has regularly gotten them ever since.

The Vikings were awarded at least one PK in five of their last seven games overall — every game except a 3-1 win against Ridgeland on Dec. 10 — and scored on most of them.

While Head acknowledged that it’s an odd streak, he said it mostly stems from creating offensive opportunities that put opposing defenders in bad positions.

“We don’t work on drawing fouls. We don’t take falls or anything,” Head said. “I think the offense is a little bit better this year. We’ve gotten more upperclassmen and juniors in the midfield. We’re having the ball in that attacking third more often, which I think is why we’re getting more calls this year. We spend a lot more time in that attacking third. When you get the ball down there more, that’s going to be more opportunities for more penalty kicks when you have it in that area.”

The player that draws the foul leading to a penalty kick is not required to take it. Some players have a better feel for the skill than others, so coaches will often put their best on the spot.

Right now, Head said, that’s Ebrahim Shuaibi. He took one and scored in a 3-0 victory over Neshoba Central in Warren Central’s last game on Jan. 7. They’ve shared the wealth, though, with six different players scoring during the streak. Reed McClurg has gotten two, while Jacob Porter, Duke Esparza, Jackson Holden, Shuaibi and Luke Bond have scored one each.
Head said Porter has proven particularly adept at drawing the fouls that lead to penalty kicks. Porter leads the team with 17 goals overall.

“Jacob does real good on getting position. He’s probably been one of the best players we’ve had lately as far as getting good position. And when he gets such good position, they’re going to foul him. He draws a lot of those fouls, which gives us a lot of penalty kicks,” Head said.

Another time penalty kicks are awarded is at the end of overtime. If the score is still tied in a region or playoff game, five players from each team take turns shooting PKs and whoever is ahead when they’ve all had their chance is the winner. If it’s still tied after that, they keep going.

Overtime shootouts are tense, pressure-packed situations that teams try to practice and prepare for. Head said having a good idea who can best handle that moment will certainly help if the Vikings find themselves in it.

“It helps a lot because we’re trying to establish our top five shooters. It changes weekly,” Head said. “At least once or twice a week we’ll go into penalty kick shooting, just to work on it in case we do get into a shootout in the playoffs.”