A slow start wasn’t enough to deter the Hays Rebel girls soccer team from rolling to a 4-1 win over the Leander Lions at Shelton Stadium Friday.
But the victory, which was the team’s third straight, continued a ten-day stretch where Hays (8-3) compiled wins over rival Lehman and playoff contender Lake Travis.
Rebel head soccer coach Brent Holcomb said he believes the wins show his young team can belong in a tough 25-6A district.
“They deserve all of their success. They’re very skilled and they work hard and they’re supportive of each other, which a lot of skilled teams don’t have,” Holcomb said.
Holcomb said the team, which is trying to fix the “epidemic” of slow starts, was pushed back by a physical Leander midfield in the early part of the first half. The Rebels also worked to combat a stiff breeze that was prevalent in the game.
But once the Rebels began keeping the ball on the ground and maintaining possession, Holcomb said they began to settle in.
“We got it together. We started connecting our passes and finding out where we needed to go,” said Maya Hood, Hays senior forward. “We started making the runs right and the defense connected. Everyone started connecting.”
Hays’ first chance at a goal was thwarted after a penalty kick by Hood caromed off of the crossbar at the 22nd minute of the first half.
The Rebels took advantage of a second opportunity seven minutes later when sophomore Jenna Sheely scored the game’s first goal at the 13:43 mark of the first half.
Hood then rectified her penalty kick miss by powering her way to a goal with eight minutes left in half to take a 2-0 lead.
Despite her 4-foot, 10-inch frame, Hood used a high-intensity approach to power her way past defenders. Hood scored two goals Friday, which added to her combined total of five goals scored in the last two matches.
Holcomb said Hood has a work rate “greater than any other soccer player I’ve ever seen” and there’s “no ball she won’t chase down.”
“I like to run around and do the best I can to pressure people enough to give up the ball, or run around enough to get the ball for my own team,” Hood said. “When you get pushed, you have to push back a little.”
Hays’ defense kept the Lion offense off the scoreboard for the majority of the match. Holcomb said the Rebels limited the play of the Leander forward and controlled the midfield.
Hays led 2-0 at halftime and extended its lead to 3-0 following a goal in the 56th minute.
Leander responded with a quick goal to cut Hays’ lead to 3-1, but Hood lofted a shot over the Lions’ goalkeeper for the team’s fourth and final goal with two minutes left in the match.
Holcomb said the Rebels are “coming along” following a challenging pre-district schedule that included taking fourth place at the Bryan/College Station invitational.
“We had a good preseason where the defense had chances to play against good teams and they found each other and they trust each other,” Holcomb said.
Hays will host soccer power Vandegrift Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Shelton Stadium.
