ELLISVILLE - One of the most-anticipated NJCAA women's soccer matches of the season came in Tuesday evening's marquee matchup between No. 1 Northwest and No. 2 Jones College.

As expected, the clash of the titans lived up to the hype and came down to the final minutes of regulation, as a stellar goal from freshman Allie Sifford in the 80th minute helped the Lady Rangers take a narrow 2-1 victory against the Lady Bobcats.

Scoreless through the first 24 minutes of action, sophomore Brandy Hernandez struck first for Northwest, as Emma Earwood provided the assist. The goal would prove to be the lone score of the opening half, sending the Lady Rangers to halftime with a 1-0 advantage.

However, Jones College responded quickly in the second half, as Sherline King connected with Jewel Hamilton for the tying goal in the 54th minute. From there, Northwest went back on the offensive, but the Lady Bobcats' defense locked down, keeping the Lady Rangers from scoring the go-ahead goal.

That would all change in the 80th minute of the match. Just when extra time began to seem more and more like a possibility, Earwood connected with Sifford for a left-footed shot that just missed the diving reach of Jones College goalkeeper Jona Hennings, giving Northwest the long-awaited answer.

Over the final 10 minutes of regulation, the Lady Rangers maintained possession and burned the clock. The Lady Bobcats' only other shot attempt came in the 88th minute, but Harrell denied the attempt from King, allowing Northwest to hold on to the massive ranked win.

Northwest finished the match with 26 total shots, including 12 on-goal. Freshman Emma Jensen took a team-high five shots, while Mari Julia Delgado finished with three shots on-goal and four total shot attempts.

Meanwhile, Sifford was a perfect 3-for-3 with her shot attempts, the most notable being the game-winner. 

As for Jones College, the Lady Bobcats ended the evening with seven total shots, three coming on-goal. King and Mary Grace Batson accounted for four of the team's seven shot attempts.

Anna Kathryn Harrell played the full 90 minutes for Northwest, totaling two saves with one goal allowed. For Jones College, Hennings was credited with 10 saves against two goals allowed.

Both teams combined for 20 fouls on the evening, with 11 called against Northwest. However, the Lady Rangers avoided any cautions or ejections, while Catherine Turner and Boo Mills were issued yellow cards in the 64th and 88th minutes, respectively.

Northwest improved to 6-0 on the season and opened 1-0 against MACCC competition. With the loss, Jones College fell to 3-1 overall and 0-1 in conference play.

Next up for the Lady Rangers will be a road match at East Central, scheduled for Friday, September 20 at 6 P.M. The Lady Warriors (0-2-1, 0-1 MACCC) are coming off a recent 5-0 loss at Mississippi Gulf Coast. Read Full Article