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KINNIKINNICK — Jackson showcased three things on Monday night.
The Ironladies were laterally quicker, had more straight-line speed in the open field and they knew how much better they could play compared to its their meeting with Unioto.
And because of those things, the Ironladies (16-1-2) are heading back to a district final.
CREDIT: Marissa Spradlin/SOSA
Led by a hat trick from Sydney Carpenter, Jackson outmatched and overwhelmed the Shermans (10-7-1) in every facet of the game to score a 3-0 victory in a Division II district semifinal at Zane Trace High School.
“We knew we could play much better, compared to the first time we played them, and we wanted to prove that,” Jackson’s T.J. Carpenter said. “We had trouble that night capitalizing on anything we created, so we had to bring our offense to the table and make something happen.”
The victory tied a school record for most wins in a season with 16 and marked the team’s 10th shutout of the season.
Early on, Jackson was playing like its hair was caught on fire. It was getting into the open field, however, offsides calls set the offense back a bit.
But instead of accepting a setback, the offsides calls only fueled them.
“We came out firing early, but obviously some of those offsides calls weren’t ideal,” T.J. Carpenter said. “But we didn’t let that distract us. We stayed focused and continued to push through. I think we’re a second half team, so getting those shots early, even if we missed, I felt pretty good about them since that means we’re putting the pressure on and one was bound to go in at some point.”
The Ironladies had four early shots within the first eight minutes, but one of them went off the post, one missed high, one was saved by Unioto keeper Maya Free and the other just missed outside before rolling out of bounds.
However, they could feel they were on the verge of breaking through and Sydney Carpenter finally got one to go as she sent a laser into the back of the net to put them ahead 1-0 at the 30:52 mark.
The Ironladies’ defense, all night long, put the clamps on Unioto’s offense, understanding the angles to take on an attack to slow the Shermans down and regain possession.
Unioto managed just one shot attempt in the first half. Meanwhile, the Ironladies continued to press and Sydney Carpenter netted her second goal off an assist from Braelynn Brennan to push the lead to 2-0 at halftime.
“Not converting those early chances might set teams back a lot, but it just gave us more momentum to keep firing,” Sydney Carpenter said. “My teammates did a great job of setting me up and I just had to one-touch them into the net. So they deserve just as much credit as I get for the goal.”
As the minutes ticked by in the second half, it became more apparent that Jackson was on a mission and wasn’t taking its foot off of the gas at any point.
The Shermans attempted to apply late pressure and managed to rip off a couple of shots at the Ironladies’ goal. But nothing, as usual, was getting by Mattie Walburn.
Jackson put the final nail in the coffin when Sydney Carpenter found the back of the net for the third time with under seven minutes left, extending the Ironladies’ season for another game.
Jackson returns to action in a Division II district final at 8:30, Thursday at Logan’s Chieftain Stadium. The Ironladies will meet with Marietta, who defeated Athens to advance.
For the past three seasons, Marietta has eliminated the Ironladies from the postseason. So for the seniors, this is their last chance not just at revenge, but to bring back Jackson’s first district title in girls soccer history.
“We’ve had a great season so far winning the league and being sectional champions. But that district title is the ultimate motivator,” T.J. Carpenter said. “Getting there last year and falling short hurt. But we have a lot of girls on the team who remember that feeling from last year, so as long as we stay focused and let that feeling drive us, I think we can get the job done.”
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