SBLive Weekly Girls Soccer Wrap: Carleigh King's two goals help Brandon get past Oak Grove
Each week, the team at SBLive Mississippi will take an in-depth look at the past week’s high school girls soccer action, as well as a look ahead to the action to come in the following week.
Here’s a look at the weekly girls soccer wrap for the week of Jan. 9 – Jan. 15.
Games of the Week
Brandon3, Oak Grove2
Tuesday night served as a huge region matchup as the Oak Grove Lady Warriors (9-4-0) traveled to Brandon to take on the Lady Bulldogs (13-4-0).
Clearly both teams were poised for playoff runs with both being undefeated in region play. However, the importance of seeding for these teams could not be understated. The loser of this series would not only finish second in the region but would also open the playoffs on the road against defending 6A State Champion Gulfport.
Brandon wasted no time getting on the scoreboard. Carleigh King found herself in a ton of space on the right-hand side following a corner. King whipped in a perfect cross to the backpost that was put on a tee for her teammate Neely Garret who finished the chance giving Brandon a 1-0 lead in the 5th minute.
Just four minutes later Brandon doubled their lead. Avery Rogers played a great through ball past the Oak Grove backline. Carleigh King ran flying by the Oak Grove backline to get to the pass with only the goalie in front of her. Before the goalkeeper could get too close, King slotted home the finish further increasing the Brandon lead.
The first ten minutes of the game were quite forgettable for Oak Grove and forget it they did. The remaining portion of the half the Lady Warriors began to take over, leading the way in possession and chances created. They were led primarily by Southern Mississippi signee Taylor Stewart. Stewart got off a great volley at the top of the box in the 20th minute and a dangerous shot after beating multiple defenders in the 27th minute.
Oak Grove’s persistence paid off as they drew one back in the 36th minute. Stewart played a great pass to Bailee Bennett whose shot was deflected right into the path of teammate Sunshine Little. Little snuck the ball past the Brandon goalkeeper, however the shot was lightly hit and drifting off frame. Teammate Zion Causey ran onto the shot and made no mistake about it smashing it into the back of the net. Halftime then arrived with Brandon up 2-1 but it was clear the second half was going to be a dog fight.
Brandon attempted several long balls early in the second half attempting to get King in behind the Oak Grove defense. Although a few of these attempts were near successful, it was Oak Grove who evened the score in the 66th minute.
A perfectly played through ball to Taylor Stewart had her charging at goal with just the Brandon goalkeeper in front of her. She calmly slotted the finish into the back of the net and the game was now even at 2-2 with fifteen minutes to play.
The teams traded closes chances in those final moments but ultimately 80 minutes was not enough time to separate the two teams. They entered two 10-minute extra time periods to hopefully determine a winner.
It was Brandon who in the 90th minute of the game scored what was the game winner. Avery Rogers played a dangerous cross from the wide right side of the field into the box. Carleigh King rose and flicked the ball in midair with her right foot putting it straight into the back of the net.
Oak Grove had one last chance from Bailee Bennett in the 95th minute but the chance was saved. Brandon was 3-2 winners in an incredibly competitive region game. After the game head coach of the Lady Bulldogs Jeremey Shortt summed up his
Brandon soccer coach Jeremy Shortt and Carleigh King talk about Tuesday’s big 3-2 win over Oak Grove pic.twitter.com/n76FrZt0id
— SBLive Mississippi (@SBLiveMS) January 12, 2022
">thoughts on his team: “It’s a young group but they keep performing. I’m proud of them.”
Goals: Neely Garrett (5’, Brandon), Carleigh King (9’, Brandon), Zion Causey (36’, Oak Grove), Taylor Stewart (66’, Oak Grove), Carleigh King (90’, Brandon)
Assists: Carleigh King (5’, Brandon), Avery Rogers (9’, Brandon), Sunshine Little (36’, Oak Grove), Avery Rogers (90’, Brandon)
Players of the Game
Brandon – Carleigh King
Oak Grove – Taylor Stewart
Up next: Brandon finished the week with a 5-0 region win over Petal. They have two games remaining on their regular season schedule with a rematch at Oak Grove on Tuesday being the biggest.
Oak Grove thrashed region foe Meridian 16-0 and now turn their attention to a rematch with Brandon. As close as the first edition was, the Lady Warriors are not out of the hunt for a region title just yet.
Northwest Rankin2, Madison Central1
Two former region rivals faced off in an intense matchup on Friday night. The Northwest Rankin Lady Cougars (15-1-2) have put together arguably the most impressive season of any team in the state. They entered the contest on a 6-game winning streak which included games against Ocean Spring and Oxford.
Their opponent, the Madison Central Lady Jaguars (9-4-0), had some shakier performances earlier in the season but as of late were playing well including wins over region rivals Clinton and Germantown.
You may think that since this game no longer had playoff implications that the intensity may be dialed down a bit. You would be wrong, as the reality is both of these teams are talented enough to make deep playoff runs and may very well play for the golden ball in early February.
The Lady Cougars surely had the opener in the 15th minute when Abbi Hornke rose and struck a header with great power 4 yards away from goal. Incredibly, the header was saved by Madison Central goalkeeper Lauren Baylor and cleared away.
Northwest Rankin made no mistake about their chance in the 19th minute. KK Morris played a great pass into a dangerous area. The Madison Central goalkeeper rose to clear the chance, but Kate Nesbit got their first heading the ball to the back post. Teammate Allie Sifford was there waiting and finished the chance giving Northwest a 1-0 lead.
The Lady Cougars continued to generate chances throughout the half but Madison Central evened the game up in the 34th minute. The Lady Jags pressured the Northwest backline which led to a turnover in a dangerous area. The ball fell to Lorilee Taylor who nailed a shot straight to the back of the net from 8 yards. The game was even 1-1 at the half.
Northwest Rankin really took the game over in the second half with a hefty advantage in possession and shots. This included a shot from Emily Welch in the 41st minute and a great half volley from Abbi Hornke in the 47th minute that went just over the bar.
Madison Central had a dangerous chance in 61st minute when Lorilee Taylor played a great one touch pass that looked to have Olivia Tribolet in behind the defense. The forwards first touch was too heavy though and the chance was cut out.
The Lady Cougars got their go-ahead goal in the 69th minute off the foot of Kate Nesbit. Abbi Hornke popped up a pass that proved to be a problem for the Madison Central defense. Nesbit beat everyone to the ball and then took a shot from the PK spot that she finished home.
Madison Central attempted to generate a few last second chances but it was to no avail. Northwest Rankin were 2-1 winners in a heated contest between two former region rivals.
Goals: Allie Sifford (19’, Northwest Rankin), Lorilee Taylor (36’, Madison Central), Kate Nesbit (69’, Northwest Rankin)
Assists: Kate Nesbit (19’, Northwest Rankin), Abbi Hornke (69’, Northwest Rankin)
Players of the Game
Northwest Rankin – Abbi Hornke
Madison Central – Lorilee Taylor
Up next: Northwest Rankin will finish up their regular season on the road next week as they travel to Clinton on Thursday and Terry on Friday.
Madison Central’s last two games of the year are huge region matchups against Clinton on Tuesday and Germantown on Friday.
Other top results across the State this week:
Tuesday, Jan. 11
D’Iberville 0, St. Martin 0 – D’Iberville wins in shootout
Desoto Central 3, Center Hill 1
St. Andrews 0, Germantown 3
Sumrall 3, South Jones 2
Florence 3, West Jones 0
Neshoba Central 0, New Hope 3
Thursday, Jan. 13
Saltillo 1, Lafayette 2
Lewisburg 6, Desoto Central 2
Sumrall 1, Northeast Jones 2
Newton County 0, West Lauderdale 2
Friday, Jan. 14
Clinton 3, Germantown 1
Starkville 0, Oxford 1
Itawamba AHS 1, Caledonia 2
East Central 0, Gautier 1
West Harrison 2, Long Beach 0
Saturday, Jan. 8
Clarkdale 1, Newton County 2
A look ahead (Jan. 16 – Jan. 22)
MORE: Full girls soccer schedule
Games of the Week
Tuesday, Jan. 18
Clinton at Madison Central
Thursday, Jan. 20
Northwest Rankin at Clinton
Other games to watch
Tuesday, Jan. 18
Brandon at Oak Grove
Olive Branch at Desoto Central
Starkville at Tupelo
Lewisburg at Center Hill
Pearl at Terry
East Central at Ocean Springs
Gulfport at Biloxi
Thursday, Jan. 20
Tupelo at Oxford
New Albany at Cornith
St. Andrews at Sumrall
Long Beach at Pass Christian
Starkville at New Hope
Friday, Jan. 21
Germantown at Madison Central
Itawamba AHS at Tupelo
Pearl at Warren Central
West Lauderdale at Starkville
Poplarville at St. Martin
Feature photo by Dylan Tribolet
