Jackson girls soccer earns another Noon Optimist tournament title

The Jackson girls soccer team used the first two days of the Noon Optimist Club Tournament to experiment with different formations and tactical approaches. The learning curve was, clearly, not all that steep, as the Indians won a pair of games over Poplar Bluff and Marion (Ill.) to sit atop the standings. On the final day, with the tournament title on the line, Jackson went back to something more familiar, with familiar results.

The Indians breezed past Sikeston 5-0 on Saturday at Cape Central High School, getting a brace each from Cassidi Tomsu -- who had a hat trick against Marion (Ill.) on Friday -- and Lauren Welker to repeat as the event's champions.

Randa Norman also scored for Jackson (4-0). Welker added an assist and had a part in four of the five goals.

Jackson's Natalie Miller pushes through Sikeston defenders Ashley Ensor, left, and Annie Ensor during the first half in the Optimist Soccer Tournament Saturday, March 26, 2016 at Cape Central High School.Fred Lynch

"Our whole thing is that we're not going to be a one-person show," Jackson coach Justin McMullen said. "We've definitely got a variety of kids that can score. Â… I could list the whole team, almost, because I feel like any of our players are capable of breaking down a player and scoring goals. I just think our chemistry just allows people to be in the right positions to score goals, and that takes a lot of pressure off of a Cassidi Tomsu. From our standpoint as coaches, we're very happy with that.

"For early in the season, I feel like our chemistry is very good. Just seeing where we're at and we'll continue to work on things. It's just a good feeling to see where we're at right now and knowing what our potential could possibly be."

The Indians outscored their three tournament opponents by a total of 12-1.

Jackson controlled its final game from the start, outworking the Bulldogs in the midfield and outshooting Sikeston 21-1 on the day.

"First of all, a lot doesn't go right [for anyone who] plays Jackson. They're one of the most quality teams in the area, year in and year out," Sikeston coach Gabe Dement said. "Coach Mac has them playing well every year. Honestly, my girls are tired and banged up after three games in three days. That was part of it. And Jackson has just got a quality team. That's the other part of it.

"What I talked to them about more than anything is just angles on defense and being more aggressive on loose balls, but honestly I wasn't that disappointed, believe it or not."

After trying out 3-5-2 and 4-3-3 formations in the round-robin tournament's first two games, Jackson returned to its staple 4-2-3-1 against Sikeston (0-2-2). The result was numbers in the midfield against the Bulldog's 3-1-4-2 and an attacking quartet that proved too much for Sikeston's defense.

It's really a tribute to the versatility of our players and their ability to understand where they need to be at in each formation," McMullen said. "We were able to give some teams different looks. We played a variety of formations and it was good to see us in sync early in the season. And to see what we need to work on in those formations.

"I thought we did a very good job building things up from the back, from our defensive line. It took a lot of pressure off of us when we were able to spread them out, and we did a good job of that."

The Indians opened the scoring in the fifth minute, as Welker crossed the ball in to the box to Norman, who put the ball into the right side of the net for a 1-0 edge.

Sikeston managed to maintain the status quo until the 31st minute, when Grace Pehle sent a corner kick into the area, where Tomsu made a diagonal run and headed the ball across the face of goal and into the right corner for a 2-0 lead.

The Indians then finished the half with a flurry, getting a 36th-minute strike from Welker, who was on the receiving end of a cross from Pehle after she beat a defender on the left side and crossed the ball into the 6-yard box.

Then, in the half's final minute, Welker stepped into a shot from the top of the box and put her side up 4-0 at the break.

Jackson only scored once in the second half, but it wasn't for a lack of chances. The Indians had 12 shots in the second half and forced five saves from Sikeston goalkeeper Madeline Witt, who had seven stops in the game.

Jackson's final goal came in the 59th minute, as Laura Bertrand sent a cross into the penalty area to Welker, who wasn't able to control the ball. But Tomsu got onto the loose ball and put it in from six yards out for a 5-0 score.

After playing three games in three days, the Indians will be back on the field Tuesday hosting defending Class 1 state champion Saxony Lutheran.

Sikeston will make another trip to Cape Girardeau on Monday to take on Notre Dame.

"It's early in the season," Dement said. "[This] game is just our fourth game. If it's any indication how we develop through the year, last year we started out like this too. We lost a couple games early in the season and didn't have the best record to start off, but as the season wore on and we played good teams like Jackson, like Perryville and Cape, we start getting better and start learning our runs and start learning our positioning. That's what you take out of it -- every game you've got to get better."

Perryville 4, Poplar Bluff 2

Perryville's Brooke Hogard kicks her team's first goal against Poplar Bluff during the first half in the Optimist Soccer Tournament Saturday, March 26, 2016 at Cape Central High School.Fred Lynch

Locked at 2-all at halftime, the Pirates got second-half goals from Kirstin Jannin and Brooke Hogard to pick up a victory and finish third in the Noon Optimist Club Tournament.

Hogard finished with a hat trick for Perryville (2-1-1).

Sophie Rowland and Shelby Johnson notched first-half goals for Poplar Bluff (4-2).

Jannin’s 59th-minute goal was the game winner, as she stepped into a Kylie Bilek cross at the top of the 18-yard box, smacking it with the outside of her right boot and putting just enough movement on it to trouble goalkeeper Shelby Sievers, who got her hands on the ball but couldn’t hold it.

Perryville controlled the final 15 minutes of the game, adding some cushion thanks to Hogard, who pulled down a Bilek cross at the far post and put it home for a 4-2 advantage in the 69th minute. The Pirates were then able to play out the match with little pressure from the Mules.

“[There’s been] some confusion late in the game where they get discombobulated and a little freaked out. I tell them, ‘Don’t freak out. No freaking.’ So it was nice to see that,” Perryville coach Jerry Fulton said. “I understand Bluff was a little tired and quit moving, so that was a great opportunity for us to make the passes and moves and keep control of the game.”

Poplar Bluff's Jordynn Caldwell, right, challenges Perryville's Cora Moll for a header during the first half in the Optimist Soccer Tournament Saturday, March 26, 2016 at Cape Central High School.Fred Lynch

Statistically, the game was very even, with Poplar Bluff just edging the Pirates in shots, 16-15. Perryville won the corner-kick battle 4-3.

Sievers finished with four saves for the Mules, while Pirates keeper Camryn Baer made five.

The result highlighted one of Poplar Bluff’s early-season focal points.

“The mental and physical toughness is kind of our goal — what we want to accomplish as a team,” Poplar Bluff coach Rusty Crafton said. “Part of that mental toughness is handling adversity. When you get down a goal, how do you handle it? How do you come back on it? We’re still trying to figure that out.”

Rowland gave the Mules a 1-0 lead eight minutes in, firing a shot that Baer couldn’t handle.

Hogard tied things up in the 12th minute, getting loose in space in the middle of the attacking third before sending a shot inside the far post.

Poplar Bluff answered back by taking a 2-1 lead at 29:12, as Johnson took the ball off the foot of a defender and blasted it into the top left corner.

Again, though, the Pirates didn’t trail for long, as Hogard got the ball on the left wing, beat a defender for pace and scored on the far side of goal in the 36th minute.

Perryville created plenty of opportunities for itself in the first half — attempting 10 shots — but was always just off the mark when it came to the final movement or shot. The chance to settle down at halftime resulted in a much more clinical second half, scoring twice in five shots.

“I think just getting the time to sit down and talk to them [helped],” Fulton said. “They were creating the good chances but they weren’t making the right runs, we weren’t being really aggressive. We’re young and started six freshmen today, so there is a learning curve involved.

“I see them getting it. They do it in practice, but of course you’re not pressured. Naturally, it’s different when the pressure comes. I just talked to them to reassure them they are doing the right things and to keep doing it and the good things will come. I think they did that in the second half.”

Marion (Ill.) 10, Cape Central 0

The Wildcats landed a knockout blow right out of the gates, going up 3-0 within the game's first three minutes and never looking back.

The result secured a second-place finish in the tournament for Marion (4-4), which led 6-0 at halftime.

In its previous two games, the host Tigers (1-3-1) had managed a 2-2 draw with Sikeston before falling to Poplar Bluff 4-0.

The Wildcats got four goals from Rose Crabtree and a pair from Blake Clark. Goalkeeper Maria Chairez got the shutout.

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FINAL STANDINGS

1. Jackson 29

2. Marion (Ill.) 20

3. Perryville 15

4. Poplar Bluff 12

5. Sikeston 10

6. Cape Central 5

Teams were award six points for a win, three points for a tie, one point for a shutout and one point for a goal (maximum of three per game).