DECATUR - Just days after finishing on the wrong end of a close 1-0 loss at No. 5 Jones College, the 10th-ranked Northwest Lady Rangers were once again locked in a thriller at No. 17 East Central on Tuesday evening.
Although both teams had several chances to score, the Lady Rangers and Lady Warriors ended the match in a 1-1 stalemate, marking the first draw of the season for either club.
East Central went on the attack early and took a 1-0 lead 10 minutes into the match, as Gabby Falla connected with Crislyn Gregory on a free kick, heading the goal in past
Addy McCann. However, Northwest flipped the momentum late in the first half and successfully kept the Lady Warriors off the board for the remainder of the half.
Though Northwest matched its 10-4 shot total from the first half, the second half brought a little more fire to the Lady Rangers. The team once again outshot East Central 10-4 in the second half, but coach
James Beattie's club was able to retain possession for most of the final 45 minutes of regulation.
Northwest provided the equalizer in the 64th minute, when
Evie Crawford's corner kick found
Caroline King, tying the match at 1-1. Despite having the momentum, several questionable calls went against the Lady Rangers, preventing Northwest from capitalizing on other chances.
Defense played a significant role for both teams in the two overtime periods. Northwest and East Central fired off one shot apiece in both frames, but neither team could find the golden goal and the outright victory.
Northwest left with a 22-10 advantage in total shots, but eight of the Lady Warriors' 10 shots came on-goal. The Lady Rangers finished with 11 shots on-goal, many coming in the second half.
Addy McCann logged a full 110 minutes for Northwest, collecting seven saves. The sophomore's record in the net fell to 3-1-1 on the season, while East Central's Allie Trager came away with 10 saves in her first start.
One noticeable stat came on corner kicks. Northwest took 15 corners on the evening, while East Central was held to just two, both coming in the double overtime period. Another glaring stat line came on fouls, where the Lady Rangers were whistled for 16 infractions against nine by East Central, with many of the Lady Warriors' fouls coming late in the match.
Dani Rodriguez and
Bre'Aunna Harps were handed cautions for Northwest, while Ella Setnikar was tagged for the Lady Warriors' only yellow card in the 73rd minute.
Northwest moved to 4-1-1 with the draw and 0-1-1 in the MACCC, while East Central moved to 3-2-1 and 0-1-1 in the conference. The Lady Rangers will look to bounce back on Friday afternoon, as 16th-ranked Pearl River makes a visit to Senatobia at 1 P.M.
