Missy Gators blow past Greenville on the pitch; Pearl sweeps Warren Central

Published 9:58 am Friday, December 9, 2022

There’s an old saying that, in life, there are no free lunches. In soccer, however, there are free kicks and the Vicksburg Missy Gators feasted on them Thursday.

Trinity McGloster scored twice in the first half on free kicks, Jamiyah Gaines converted a penalty kick in the second half, and the Missy Gators used a late flurry of goals to blow out Greenville 6-0.

Vicksburg (5-2-2, 2-0 MHSAA Region 3-5A) won the second of two region games it will play in four days. It finishes the busy stretch Friday at home, against Cleveland Central. The game will begin at 4:30 p.m.

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Greenville beat Vicksburg 3-0 in the boys’ game Thursday.

“Two district wins feels good. It’s a great start going into Friday playing Cleveland Central,” McGloster said. “We tried out some new stuff this year instead of playing the same formation and it’s worked very good.”

McGloster staked Vicksburg to a 2-0 halftime lead by lifting two free kicks over the head of Greenville’s keeper on nearly identical plays.

The first free kick came from about 20 yards, in the 18th minute, and the second from 35 yards in the 38th. Both were high, blooping shots that sailed over the keeper’s head, then bounced behind her and into the net.

“I got a free shot on goal and knew I just had to make it over her head. That was the best option,” McGloster said. “To me, those kicks are better than PKs.”

The Missy Gators moved Amari Johnson out of the keeper position to the field to start the second half, and the speedy freshman provided an immediate spark.

In the 45th minute, Johnson received a throw-in, circled through several defenders as she crossed from the left side of the field to the right, then passed it off to Leah O’Bryant. O’Bryant angled a shot past the keeper and into the net for a 3-0 lead.

Later on, Johnson scored two goals of her own. One was a deflection off a throw-in, and the other was on a breakaway in the 70th minute.

Johnson’s two goals were among three in a 13-minute span that took the Missy Gators’ lead from 3-0 to 6-0. The other goal in that stretch was Gaines’ penalty kick in the 62nd minute.

Vicksburg outshot Greenville 10-2 in the second half as it took control.

“Part of it is, we just wore Greenville out. We were tired, but we could rely a little more on our ball skills than they could,” Vicksburg coach Samantha Bailey said. “I was able to put Amari Johnson on the field and let Ava (Pritached) back in the goal. Buggy (Johnson) always opens the field up. When we put her out there, that’s when we really open up. She’s fast and nobody can keep up with her.”

Pearl 2, Warren Central 1
Jordan Polk gave Warren Central a lead with a goal early in the first half, but Pearl got the equalizer just before halftime and another in the second half to push past the Lady Vikes on Thursday.

Warren Central (4-7, 1-1 MHSAA Region 5-6A) split its first two region games, and will play a third Dec. 13 at 5:30 p.m., at home against Northwest Rankin.

Boys
Madison-St. Joseph 4, St. Aloysius 1
Will Dowe scored St. Aloysius’ only goal, off a throw-in from John Ellis Montgomery, in a loss to Madison-St. Joseph on Thursday.

St. Al (3-4-1) will play Copiah Academy Monday at 5:30 p.m., at Sports Force Parks.

Pearl 1, Warren Central 0
Pearl converted a penalty kick late in the second half for the game’s only goal, and beat Warren Central (2-7, 0-2 MHSAA Region 5-6A) on Thursday.

Goal keeper Connor Scribner made 10 saves for Warren Central, and defenders Jessi Hallberg, Birame Ndiaye and Tyler Godshaw kept Pearl (9-1, 1-0) in check all night.

About Ernest Bowker

Ernest Bowker is The Vicksburg Post's sports editor. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post's sports staff since 1998, making him one of the longest-tenured reporters in the paper's 140-year history. The New Jersey native is a graduate of LSU. In his career, he has won more than 50 awards from the Mississippi Press Association and Associated Press for his coverage of local sports in Vicksburg.

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