by MARK CAUL
Hays’ Savanah Derrick (right) leaps high over Lehman’s Valerie Murillo during the Lady Rebels’ 5-3 win over the Lady Lobos Friday night at Shelton Stadium. (Photo by Rudy Gonzalez)
Hays head coach Ryan Race knew his team would be ready to exact revenge on rival Lehman the minute they stepped onto the Shelton Stadium field Friday night.
After battling the Lady Lobos to a 0-0 tie earlier in the season, the conditions were right for the Lady Rebels to eliminate their crosstown counterparts from playoff contention.
Hays was able to get their offense rolling early and often in a 5-3 win.
“We have really been working hard in practice and I was very proud of how we kept our composure when they made a run at us,” Race said. “We’re trying to put ourselves in position to make a playoff run and this was a game we really wanted to win.”
While the two teams struggled to find a rhythm in their last matchup, Hays wasted no time getting on the board this time around with Stephanie Segovia scoring the first of her three goals early to spark the Lady Rebels to an early 3-1 advantage late in the first half.
“They got off to a great start on us and I think our players start pressing a little bit,” Lehman head coach Nauri Garcia said. “But we were playing to win this game and once we settled down, we were able to make a run at them. I will give our girls a lot of credit, they didn’t quit.”
Lehman stormed back with a goal just before the half with Amara Smith taking a pass from Dominique Jaquez and finding the net to pull Lehman within 3-2 at intermission.
After another goal by Lehman’s Valerie Murillo tied the score at 3-3, the Lady Rebels responded with two goals of their own from Marissa McCann and Natasha Anderson to close out the scoring for Hays.
“I was glad to see us respond quickly to the goal they had to tie the game,” Race said. “I was especially happy that we were able to score five goals without two of our best players out there.”
While the loss officially eliminated Lehman from the playoffs, Garcia believes the gap between the two programs has narrowed based on this season’s results.
“You never want to lose, but Hays has a very strong program and these are games that we may have lost by big margins in the past,” Garcia said. “We have really played well against them this year and hopefully if we are able to beat them next year it will become an even better rivalry.”
Hays went on to tie district-leading Dripping Springs Monday night 0-0, and the news will get even better for the Lady Rebs as they head to the final three games of district play in third place. Hays will get two of its leaders, Sam Gonzalez and Lena New, back starting Friday. Both have missed time with injuries.
“We want to use Monday night’s game with Dripping Springs, where we had a realistic chance to beat them, as a springboard into the playoffs,” Race said. “Getting Sam and Lena back will hopefully give us even more confidence during the most important time of the season.”
