Bulldogs fall in district quarters

POPLARVILLE — Mississippi Gulf Coast pushed No. 10 Pearl River hard in the NJCAA Gulf District Tournament women's soccer quarterfinal here Saturday but fell short in a 3-1 defeat.

The Bulldogs got the game's first goal but couldn't hold on.

"The girls came and played really well," Gulf Coast coach Ryan Joiner said. "I'm proud of them for what they achieved tonight, even though the loss is tough to deal with. Everybody on the field put in a shift, the bench was lively for us. It's tough to give two penalties up. The third one, we were pushed up trying to score. It's a tough night."

Hailey Moore (Fr., Biloxi/Biloxi) on a free kick seven minutes before halftime. Her looping ball from about 25 yards out beat the keeper.

Pearl River got its first penalty in the 53^rd minute to tie it up.

The Bulldogs created a pair of great chance over the next 20 minutes, with Jennifer Lopez (Fr., Gautier/Gautier) nearly beating the keeper on a semi-breakaway.

The Wildcats scored their second PK with 12 minutes to play, and got a goal on a counterattack with three minutes left.

"Pearl River made some adjustments, and we adjusted to them," Joiner said. "It was very level at 1-1, and we thought the game was wide open for us to have a chance to win. We tried to do so, but the second penalty hurt."

The Bulldogs finished 9-5-1 after being eliminated for the second straight year in the district quarterfinals. This year's squad made significant strides in Joiner's rebuilding efforts.

"Our job right now is to continue growing this thing. We want to be on the winning end of a playoff game next year and pushing for a top-10 program in the country. It's small step, and we're continuing to make those. We're not happy about tonight, but we're excited about the future, especially our sophomores who are going to move on and play."

Gulf Coast's sophomore class won 19 games in two years. That's the most since the 2012 class graduated having won 23. The group includes Dana Brooks (So., Alajuela Costa Rica/Colegio Jesus Ocaña Rojas), Kadie Craft (So., Picayune/Picayune), Azlyn Dawson (So., Taylorsville/West Jones), Isabella Reynolds (So., Pascagoula/Pascagoula), Neave Ross (So., Whitley Bay England/Whitley Bay), Kyla Smith (So., Hurley/East Central) and Elissa Viquez (So., St. Rose La./Destrehan).

"They put their minds to it every day," Joiner said. "It's a group of committed players who are going to do really well. I hate to see them in tears, but I know they have big futures ahead of them."

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