RAYMOND — It’s homecoming week for Hinds Community College, but on Tuesday afternoon at the Hinds soccer field, it could’ve been the same for seven Meridian Community College Lady Eagles.

For more than half the game, nine former WAV United players — seven for Meridian and two from Hinds — were on the field in the Region 23 contest. It was the first time Meridian had been back at Hinds since winning last year’s Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges state championship. It was also the first time the two schools had faced off since Hinds beat Meridian in last year’s Region 23 Tournament semifinal.

Tuesday’s contest was another long, hard game with Meridian (6-0) holding off a late charge by Hinds to take a 2-1 win. Meridian had built a 2-0 lead with the eventual game-winner coming off a header by former St. Aloysius player Taylor George on an assist by fellow freshman and St. Al teammate Rebecca Sigh.

“This was a lot of fun. I loved it,” Sigh said.

“Playing Hinds reminds of when it was us (St. Aloysius) playing Greenville-St. Joe. They are our rival,” said George, a member of the five-time state champion WAV United, a traveling team made up of players from Warren Central, St, Aloysius and Vicksburg High.The goal was George’s fourth of the season.

The addition of George and Sigh gives Alex George’s Meridian team a distinct Vicksburg flavor, joining his five returning Warren County sophomores in Holly Head, Kari Lieberman, Jill Rush, Chelsa Jones and Crystal Davidson.

“The two freshmen have been doing good for us, but I look at us as being a Meridian team,” Alex George said. “Rebecca has a strong leg and does a good job in the back and Taylor finished off a header for our second goal today.

“Overall, I thought we played pretty good once we settled down.”

After last season, Meridian left the MACJC and is playing its first season since 2002 as an independent. Alex George has had to change MCC’s schedule adding a few out-of-state tournaments along with some games against senior college teams such as Mississippi College and Belhaven.

“Playing as an independent, we’ve gone to Georgia and we had a trip to Tennessee but the school folded its program,” said Jones, who played the whole game in the defensive backfield. At one point, with MCC guarding a 2-1 lead, the entire back four defense was comprised of WAV United girls in Jones, Sigh, Head and Rush.

“Definitely more of a Vicksburg feel,” said Jones, who played with Kari Lieberman at Warren Central. Head, Rush and Davidson played at Vicksburg High. Hinds’ two locals in Lucy Matthews and Viktoria Case both played with Head, Rush and Davidson at Vicksburg High.

“We only lost two girls off our state title team and we replaced them with two more Vicksburg girls in Rebecca and Taylor,” Jones said. “I think it helps us. All of us played for at least eight years with WAV United. When we went up two goals we went to that sloped defense which is something we ran a lot of with the United.”

The one other big addition for Meridian was a new center in Christina Murray, a freshman from Jamaica.

Murray scored the game’s first goal in the 42nd minute. She had a one-on-one break and booted in a score from 15 yards.

George’s goal came within the first five minutes of the second half for a 2-0 lead.

Hinds (6-4-1) got a goal from Clinton’s Kendal Lee late to make it 2-1.