6A Playoffs: Madison Central girls get past Oxford on penalty kicks, will host Clinton in North State
OXFORD – Madison Central senior Anna Wheatley put it best this week: “I want a ring.” Wheatley and the Lady Jaguars took the next step towards that goal on Saturday defeating the Oxford Lady Chargers in penalty kicks after completing regulation and extra time deadlocked at 0-0.
The game certainly had the feel that a ton was on the line. The Oxford crowd did a great job of motivating their team and created a great home field advantage. But the Lady Jags persisted on and now find themselves a game away from the State Championship.
MORE: MHSAA Girls Soccer Playoff Brackets
The Lady Jags will now host Clinton in the North State Championship. Clinton defeated Tupelo 1-0 in extra time to earn their spot in the game. It will be a great contest between two region rivals who know each other very well.
Oxford (12-6-1) came into the match with quite a bit of momentum. They took home their regional championship in their final game of the season beating rival Tupelo with a last second penalty kick. They dominated their first game of the playoffs beating Southaven 6-0.
Madison Central (13-4) though may one of the hottest teams in the state. They are playing their best soccer at precisely the right time. They have put on an offensive onslaught of late averaging 4 goals a game over their last seven games. Oxford presented a significant defensive challenge in this one though.
Madison Central opened with a great chance in the third minute. Olivia Tribolet put in a free kick that bounced around in the box and fell to Wheatley. Wheatley drilled a volley that went flying off the crossbar and out of play.
Oxford responded with a chance of their own in the 6th minute when Parker Martin laid off a pass to Allison Greer at the top of the box. Greer hit a curling shot that required a diving save from the Madison Central goalkeeper Lauren Baylor.
An intense first half continued with both teams trading chances throughout. There were several tense moments for both sides but ultimately the half came with the teams in a scoreless deadlock.
Madison Central came out determined in the second half and controlled the majority of the game. The Lady Jags began to win the possession battled and created chances including a great look on goal in the 53rd minute.
Wheatley played a short corner to Tribolet who was then able to get a great shot off to the near post. A diving save by the Oxford goalkeeper Kaitlyn Urbanek kept the game level.
As the game progressed it was clear that both teams were very talented defensively. The Lady Chargers’ Alexis Trimble and Ainsley Tacke were all over the field cutting out Madison Central chances. On the other end Elizabeth Delaney anchored the Lady Jags defense and made life difficult for the Oxford attackers.
Oxford worked their way into the game later in the second half and nearly found game winning goal. Ultimately neither team could break through, and the game went into extra time.
Madison Central got their best chance of the game right as the extra period started. A great pass from Wheatley to start the overtime period curled past the Oxford backline and fell to Sofia Monico who was wide open eight yards from goal. Monico made solid contact on her shot, but it went inches wide of the post.
In the second extra time period, it was Oxford who put the pressure on Madison Central. The Lady Charger's Parker Martin and Allison Greer created a few near goals for their team but were unable to find the back of the net. The extra time period concluded with the teams still tied and the game entered penalty kicks to determine a winner.
Madison Central prevailed, drilling home their first 3 kicks by Olivia Tribolet, Lorilee Taylor, and Akala Jacobs. Oxford was unsuccessful on all 3 of their attempts with two great saves from Lauren Baylor.
