Soccer fever takes hold in Jasper
Lady Dogs score first goal of year on Henderson
By GEORGIA PURDY Newsboy Correspondent

JASPER'S CAROLINE KIPP and Haley Shipman, above, are all smiles after scoring on Henderson, a team that has not allowed a goal this season.The score tied the game at 1-all but Henderson came back to score three more goals to claim a 4-1 victory. Pictured left, Lauren Morgan attempts to stop the Henderson drive toward the goal.

The Jasper Lady Bulldog soccer team held on to their third place district status after beating Center 7-0 last week and losing 4-1 to Henderson Friday night.

Henderson scored within the first six minutes of the game when they took a ball that bounced off of a Jasper defender and made a run for the goal. Goalie Marcie Ratcliff made a charge on the player outside the 18-yard box, but the ball got past her and the other defenders and into the net.

With 23:21 in the half, Allison Collins got the ball on the left side and took a shot at the goal. Henderson's goalie, who had not been scored on all year, got her hands on the ball but could not control it. Haley Shipman charged in put the ball into the net, resulting in a 1-1 tie.

Newsboy photos/Georgia Purdy

The teams remained tied until just before the end of the first half when Henderson rolled a shot into the far corner of the net.

Jasper played strong in the second half but Henderson controlled the ball more of the time and scored twice, the last goal coming with only a few minutes left in the game.

"Overall, we were outshot 17-11," Coach Ron Vickers said. "Although the end results were not what we had hoped for, there were several positives that came out of the game. It was a character building opportunity and hopefully it will prepare us for play- off type games."

Earlier in the week, the Lady 'Dogs shut out Center. Jasper began scoring early in the game when Natalie Dufner hit the net on her fourth shot. Caroline Kipp then followed with two additional goals, one on her first shot of the night and the other with 18:24 left in the first half. Then Amanda Miesch added another.

In the second half, Jasper continued to play strong defense, limiting Center to only two shots on goal. Shipman scored again and Brooke Wagnon added the final two goals for the 7-0 win. In all, the Lady Bulldogs outshot their opponents 50-2 and marked their 10th shutout of the season.

Newsboy photo/Georgia Purdy JASPER FRESHMAN LAUREN MORGAN prevents the Hudson offense from a scoring attempt on goalie Marcie Ratcliff.

"I was pleased with their performance," Vickers said.

Jasper has three games left. They play Diboll this week and face second place Nacogdoches Friday night. The last regular season game is against Livingston March 14.

"A win over Nacogdoches would put us in a very tight race for second place," Vickers said.