Bulldogs win tourney in PKs

It was a battle of two strong defenses Saturday in the finals of the Noon Optimist Spring Classic Girls Soccer Tournament at Notre Dame Regional High School.

After 100 minutes of scoreless action, Notre Dame edged Jackson 5-4 in penalty kicks to claim the title. The five shots each goalie faced in the shootout nearly were more than they had to face the entire game.

"It was a good battle back and forth," Jackson coach Zack Walton said. "We had some good opportunities, and they had some good opportunities."

Those good opportunities were few and far between early in the game. With the sun beating down on the players less than two hours after their semifinal games, neither team was able to find much in the way of offense in the first half.

"I think it took both teams a little while to get going after playing earlier today," Notre Dame coach Jeff Worley said. "When the sun went down you could notice the play picking up."

Notre Dame (4-0) had several strong opportunities in the second half, with a shot off a corner kick squirting through the goal box and a bad angle shot by Amanda Dirnberger going wide.

Once regulation ended scoreless, the Bulldogs picked up their pace. Brittney Little, Lauren Mehner and Destiny Dirnberger all had chances in the first overtime, but Jackson (2-1) goalie Kylie Werner was equal to the challenge.

"I thought our passing picked up as the game went along," Worley said. "We really created a lot of opportunities, and we were close to getting them in."

The Bulldogs continued to substitute throughout the overtime period. While the Indians had several key defenders hurt on their bench, Notre Dame continued to look fresh deep into the game.

"I tried to keep the subs coming in and out to keep us fresh," Worley said. "I was really pleased with our depth. Our play was solid throughout and you didn't see any drop-off."

Amanda Dirnberger had another good shot for the Bulldogs in the second overtime, but was once again denied by Werner. Jackson had its best chance of the game with less than two minutes remaining, but forward Molly Hartmann's shot went over the crossbar.

In the shootout Jackson opened with a shot off the post, giving the Bulldogs an early chance to take the lead. Amanda Dirnberger knocked Notre Dame's first try in the net, and Sierra Ellis put in the game-winner.

Dirnberger said she was happy to come away with a title after a good tournament.

"Jackson's a good team," she said. "We played them last year in the tournament and lost to them 4-0. This year we wanted some revenge."

Central 7, Poplar Bluff 0

After dropping a tight 2-1 game to Jackson in the semifinals, Central bounced back to win the third-place game.

Heidi Pilsner, Lee Thomas and Paige Foley had two goals apiece for Central (3-1). Kate Miller added a goal.

Assists went to Julie Underwood (two), Megan McDonald, Foley, Lauren Thompson, Chelsey Burns and Lindsey Jateff.

Perryville 3, Marion, Ill. 2

Chris Schremp scored her second goal of the game 37 seconds into overtime to defeat Marion in the fifth-place game.

Amber Hacker scored first for Perryville (2-2) in the first half on a penalty kick and assisted on Schremp's goal in the second half. Perryville led 2-1 until Marion scored with about 90 seconds left.

Goalkeeper Chastity Marr made 14 saves for Perryville. Megan Bleckley had an assist.