Madison Central cruises to WC tournament title|[12/17/06]
Published 12:00 am Saturday, December 16, 2006
Three wins and no goals allowed was enough to hand Madison Central the Warren Central Tournament championship a little bit earlier than planned.
Madison Central blanked Warren Central 3-0 then beat Vicksburg 2-0 on Saturday giving it a 3-0 tournament record. A 6 p.m. championship game, in which Madison would have played, was scrapped because the Lady Jaguars couldn’t play a fourth tournament game because of schedule limitations.
“With Madison going 3-0 and since a title game would be their fourth game of the tournament, it was easier not to have a last game,” said WC coach and tournament director Kristin Gough. “The MHSAA puts a limit of 24 games you can play during the regular season and all of us coaches tend to count each tournament as three games.”
In three games at WC, the Lady Jaguars outscored their foes 10-0.
That left the Lady Vikes (8-5-2) with a shot at finishing second in the six-team tournament, but St. Andrew’s derailed those plans by forcing a 1-1 draw in WC’s last game of the day. The tie gave WC a 1-1-1 mark in the tournament.
“I felt the tournament itself was a big success, especially with the quality of teams that were here,” Gough said. “It was a lot of good soccer before the break.”
And WC, after playing 15 games, needs a break.
“We don’t play again until Jan. 2 so it’s a long break. But it’s good for us because we have a lot of nagging injuries,” Gough said.
Had it not been for a questionable call 14 minutes deep into the second half that went against Gough’s Lady Vikes, WC may have earned a win instead of the tie over the Lady Saints.
WC defender Cassandra Cantrell was called for roughing when she tackled St. Andrew’s striker Alana Cox near the box. St. Andrew’s was awarded a penalty kick from 10 yards.
“Casandra made a clean slide and she got all ball. The official saw it from another angle,” Gough said.
Krissy Ford made the penalty kick to put St. Andrew’s up 1-0.
Six minutes later, WC got the goal back when a call went its way. St. Andrew’s Emily Ann Scott drilled WC’s Mary Clare Scurria as she was setting up for a header near the box. Scott was yellow-carded and Scurria was awarded a penalty kick.
The shot initially hit the left post but caromed across the goal and in to tie the game at 1-all in the 52nd minute.
St. Andrew’s would have the next three shots at regaining the lead but WC keeper Molly Beth Jourdan saved one, while the other two sailed wide.
WC’s last chance came in stoppage time when Scurria took a corner kick, but the play went wide.
St. Andrew’s (2-3-3) dominated play in the first half as the Lady Vikes were held to just one shot, a 25-yard direct kick by Scurria that went wide. Molly Beth Jourdan made four saves in goal in the first half to keep the Lady Saints off the board. She had eight for the game.
NW Rankin 1, Vicksburg 0.
Rachel Webb’s goal lifted NW Rankin (8-3-2) past Vicksburg for the Lady Cougars’ second win in the WC Soccer Tournament.
Vicksburg (9-6-1) finished with three straight losses.
“We’re in a funk. Did we score a goal this weekend?,” asked VHS coach Kevin Manton. The Missy Gators had one, in Friday’s 2-1 loss to St. Andrew’s.