Jackson avenges loss to Bulldogs

The Jackson girls soccer team had one thought on their minds Thursday when they hosted Notre Dame: revenge.

Jackson, which had lost to the Bulldogs 4-3 on April 4, exacted its revenge with a 5-1 win at home Thursday. All-state forward Molly Hartmann scored two goals and assisted on another in Jackson's win.

"Our girls came out with some revenge," Jackson coach Zack Walton said. "We were a lot more prepared tonight and ready to play."

Added Notre Dame coach Jeff Worley: "We beat them at our place, we had a really good game, and I'm sure they were ready to come out and get a win back on us."

The Indians' offensive onslaught began right from the start of the game, as they controlled the ball in the offensive zone, allowing Notre Dame (7-7-2) only a few scoring opportunities during the game.

But Jackson (11-2) managed just one goal in the first half before scoring two more early in the second half and two more late in the game for a 5-0 lead.

Hartmann gave an indication what kind of night Notre Dame was in for when she pressured the Bulldogs' net less than 3 minutes into the game. Notre Dame goalkeeper Claudia Brauss rushed out of the net to make a play, and Hartmann sidestepped her on the right side of the goal but pushed the ball into the right side of the open goal.

She did not fail the second time, finding the goal with 28:41 remaining in the half. Jackson sophomore Erin Curtis found sophomore Randi Kraust in front of the net from the left side, but Kraust's shot attempt was high and fell short of the goal. After the ball scooted away from two Bulldogs defenders, Hartmann gained control and deposited it into the left side of the net.

After scoring the lone goal of the first half, Hartmann assisted on Jackson's second goal. She took a centering pass from Lauren Drewett and pushed the ball to Hannah Kohm, who kicked a bouncing shot past Brauss at the 33:34 mark.

Four minutes later, Jenni Tenholder gave the Indians additional breathing room when Brauss was unable to grab Tenholder's shot from reaching the top right corner of the goal.

The play added to the injury woes for the Bulldogs, who were playing without six injured players. Brauss injured her left knee in her save attempt. Worley said her knee cap slipped out of place. The coach said he was uncertain of how long Brauss will be out with the injury but added that this type of injury normally is not serious.

"It wasn't the best of circumstances," Worley said of all the injuries. "But the girls played hard and we made a game of it for a while and later on we wore out."

The Indians added two more goals late in the game before Notre Dame was able to muster any scoring. Kraust beat Laura Muir, who replaced Brauss, on a penalty kick with less than 9 minute to play. Hartmann added her second goal at 7:57 with a slow dribbler bouncing past Muir.

A defensive lapse by Jackson cost the Indians the shutout when a pass skipped past two defenders to Meredith Medlin behind the defense. Medlin fired a line drive past a diving Kylie Werner in the low right corner.

"We played a little short ball and it kind of got everybody to watch a little bit, to freeze a little bit and the ball missed a couple of players," Worley said, "and Meredith Medlin picked the ball up on the back side and made a great shot."

Added Walton: "Just a little breakdown late in the game. Some of that may be a lack of concentration for a split second. And she had a nice shot, she finished it well, put it right on the money."