St. Patrick Clinches 2023 Class 1 Soccer Championship with 6-0 win over Tupelo Christian
RIDGELAND — It had been a year and a week since St. Patrick had watched its most promising season in years end with a loss to Our Lady Academy in South State.
After the Fighting Irish advanced to the state championship, they weren’t about to let another title shot slip away.
Linda Mustered and Bella Jordan both scored a pair of goals, and the Irish dominated in a 6-0 win over Tupelo Christian in the MHSAA Class 1 Soccer Championship Saturday afternoon at the Lee Boozer Athletic Complex at Ridgeland High.
“We worked really hard this season,” Mustered said, still out of breath after being handed the championship golden ball. “We had some obstacles we had to overcome this year, but we kept it together. We lost in South State last year, and we felt the pain, but we knew what we had to do this year, we worked hard for it and we got it.”
With the win, St. Patrick capped a truly remarkable season — the Irish finished with a record of 18-1, out-scored their collective opponents 81 to nine. They beat their playoff foes Southeast Lauderdale, Loyd Star, Our Lady Academy and Tupelo Christian by a combined score of 26-1.
As with much of the season, the Irish leaned on a couple of upperclassmen to carry the bulk of the load Saturday.
Senior Hailey Alvarez got things going early with a goal in the ninth minute after a deflection left her with an open look at the goal from inside the box.
Mustered, who earned MVP honors, scored the first of her two goals with a shade over two minutes left in the first half, when Jordan’s initial shot was blocked right to her feet from 10 yards out.
After the Irish took their 2-0 lead into the intermission, Jordan got things going in the second half with a goal in the 44th minute. Mustered added her second less than two minutes later, and the rout was on.
The Irish played so well, it caught even first-year St. Patrick coach Cassandra Terry a little off-guard.
“When I came here, I knew my job wasn’t to teach these girls how to play soccer,” Terry said. “They already know how to play soccer at St. Patrick. But to guide them through the season and see it all come together to culminate in this championship has been very special, and fun.”
The loss was just the sixth of the season for Tupelo Christian (17-6). The Eagles ran roughshod through Class 1 North, despite fielding a roster that featured no seniors and just four juniors.
TCPS blew through North State, beating Yazoo County, Forest, Booneville and Amory by a combined score of 22 goals to four, but didn’t have much of an answer for the three-headed monster of Jordan, Mustered and Alvarez.
“They are the best team we’ve played,” Tupelo Christian coach Brad Kimberlin said. “I’m so proud of the way our team played down the stretch, and I’m excited about the future with all our young players.”