Lehman's Jazmine Rodruguez (left) and Hays' Megan Blanks and the rest of the Lady Rebels and Lady Lobos closed out the regular season Friday night. Hays prevailed 1-0, and now both teams will head to the playoffs. (Photo by Dominic Martinez)
By JASON GORDON
The Lady Rebel girls soccer team managed to pull off something few Hays teams are doing these days – avoid a first-ever loss against Lehman.
The Lady Rebs closed out the district season with a 1-0 victory over the Lady Lobos Friday night.
Hays had the second seed in the District 49-4A playoff race locked up headed into the contest, and finished 10-1-1 in league play.
The Lady Lobos also qualified for the playoffs for the second time in school history.
Hays will play Hutto and Lehman will take on Pflugerville Hendrickson in the first round, sometime between the dates of March 24-26. Both games will be played at sites yet to be determined.
Hays head coach Cole Reynolds said it was not only important to head into the postseason with momentum, but to also keep the Lady Rebs’ soccer win streak against Lehman alive.
“You don’t ever want ever want to lose to Lehman if you’re at Hays, especially heading into the playoffs,” Reynolds said. “I was very interested to see how our girls would respond knowing we had our playoff spot locked up, and I was pleased. Lehman played a very good game and they had several chances to tie the score, but we responded.”
After a scoreless first half, Hays meticulously advanced the ball down the field before it found its way to Kelli Uresti, who looked like she was going to advance and take a shot. She instead niftily tucked the ball backward and bumped a pass to Bracie Harris, who nailed a left-footed shot into the right side of the net 15-minutes into the second half.
“It was a real nice goal,” Reynolds said. “We showed great patience and ball movement as a team.”
From there, Lehman had several chances to score the equalizer, but the Hays defense was up to the task each time.
Five Hays defenders – Rachel Pitts, Jessica Crockett, Samantha Gordon, Dylan Devine and Leslie Simoneau – all played instrumental roles in making sure the Lady Lobos never tied the score.
“We had key efforts out of all our defenders,” Reynolds said. “They were the difference during the last 25 minutes of the game.”
Reynolds also got a huge effort out of his freshman goal keeper Mallory Willis, who recorded a shutout.
“Mallory did a great job,” he said. “They had several chances to tie the score but she stopped every one.”
Hays senior captain and four-year starter Lena New gave Lehman credit for a well-played game.
“It was a high-intensity battle throughout and they gave us a tough test,” New said. “It was nice to keep our undefeated streak alive against them. We never lost to them in my four years here, and I didn’t want that to end.”
New said it’s also important for Hays, which reached the regional finals in 2008 but hasn’t won a playoff game since 2009, to get back on the winning track in the postseason.
“Winning our first game playoff game is very important,” New said. “After that, who knows how far we can go, but I know this is a team that has a lot of confidence right now so I think we can accomplish some great things.”
Lehman head coach Nauri Garcia was proud of the way his team played against Hays and is looking forward to the Lady Lobos’ second trip to the playoffs. He singled out goal keeper April Martinez as well as his seniors for helping hold Hays to only one goal.
“We played an excellent game against Hays,” Garcia said. “I think it was the best soccer we have played all season. Especially headed into the playoffs, this gives our team a lot of confidence. A win would have been great, but the way we played certainly will help keep our momentum going in the right direction.”
