Republic’s Emily Jordan scored a goal just four minutes into the game and the Lady Tigers held on from there, earning a 2-0 victory over conference and district rival Willard Tuesday.
Jordan’s goal came on a free kick with 35:55 remaining in the first half. She lined up 25-30 yards from the goal, crossed the ball in front of the keeper, and buried the ball in the opposite side of the net.
Coach Kevin Hauck says the early goal made a world of difference for the Lady Tigers.
“I thought it was huge. We came out against Bolivar last week and they got a quick goal. That’s kind of tough,” he says. “But when you’re the one who’s able to get a quick goal, that really inspires your girls and gets you going. The girls said, ‘Hey, I feel really good about this. It pumped them up for the rest of the game.”
Hauck says he was pleased to see the Lady Tigers come out with a more aggressive attitude after last week’s sometimes-sluggish loss to Bolivar. He hopes to see that continue during the home stretch of the season.
“Hopefully we can … build off that and look to get some quick shots. We had some really good opportunities both halves,” Hauck says.
The Lady Tigers put the game away with just about two minutes remaining in the second half, when Brittany Rayburn slid the ball to Anna Jones in box. Jones turned and fired the ball into the right side of the net.
“I saw something in the middle that I just thought we could keep attacking on, and it just kept opening up for us,” Hauck says of Republic’s offense. “We really were just able to keep attacking. Then when they would squeeze in, it really would open up wide for us and we were able to go wide.”
The JV team played Willard to a 1-1 tie. Kayla Donjuan scored for Republic.
The varsity Lady Tigers improve to 9-7. They’re at home against Marshfield Thursday.
