Jackson offense clicks in 7-0 soccer win vs. Central girls

Jackson soccer coach Justin McMullen has been waiting most of the season for his squad to put together a complete game.

If Tuesday's 7-0 whitewash of rival Central wasn't what he's been looking for, it's close.

"Pretty close, but as a coach, you still see room for improvement," McMullen said after Jackson improved to 12-4-1 on the season with the win. "We're getting there. We're getting real close, and it's good to see us playing that way this time of year."

Coupled with a weekend 4-1 victory over Parkway South, Jackson has outscored its last two opponents 11-1. The Indians are doing it with a potent offense featuring multiple players who can score in a variety of ways, coupled with unrelenting pressure from the midfield that has prevented opponents from attacking offensively.

"I really feel that's why this team's unique, because we can score from a lot of different areas and we don't have to rely on just one or two players," McMullen said after seven Indians scored goals against the Tigers. "We can score goals from all over the field."

Jackson freshman Haylie Woodard makes a header during the Indians’ 7-0 win over Central on Tuesday at Central High School. (Adam Vogler)

Central will attest to that after falling into a 2-0 hole less than six minutes into the contest. Jackson midfielder Megan Hawk corralled a ball just inside midfield and footed a pass ahead to sophomore forward Cassidi Tomsu, who calmly dribbled past a pair of defenders before drilling a low shot past Central freshman goalkeeper Katie Kinder into the near corner of the net just 2 minutes, 10 seconds into the game.

Just over three minutes later, Jackson midfielder Randa Norman controlled a clearing pass out front and passed ahead to Hawk, who quickly fired a shot that glanced off a Central defender. Kinder never had a chance as the ball found the back of the net for a 2-0 Jackson lead.

Hawk, a sophomore who was moved to an attacking position at midfield early this season, likes her new role.

"I really like being in the middle because I get to pass to [teammates] better and pass outside and work better with my team," Hawk said. "We're all getting our heads up and passing to feet better."

Midway through the first half Jackson forward Emily Euclide-Gartman's cross was cleared by the Central defense, but the ball went right to Norman out front, and the freshman quickly gained control and fired a shot into the net from 18 yards out to put the Indians up 3-0 at halftime.

Jackson sophomore Cassidi Tomsucontrols the ball in front of Central junior Abby Shupert.

"I got back to win the ball, and once I got the ball, the shot was open," Norman said. "I thought it was my [chance] to take the shot."

Any chance the Tigers had to get back into the game was quickly doused by Rachel Crites' goal at the 35:48 mark of the second half.

Kinder made successive saves on a free kick and subsequent rebound that led to a Jackson corner kick. Hailey Mouser lifted the corner kick to the far side, where a Central defender deflected the ball to Crites, who turned and fired a shot into the back of the net to make it 4-0.

"We're learning to connect," Crites, a junior forward, said. "Coach always tells us to play a full game, so now we're starting to pick up the pace of our [attack]."

Jackson sophomore Megan Clippard made it 5-0 when her free kick from 33 yards out floated over the top of Kinder's leaping save attempt and into the net. The Indians added two goals in the final 6:50, one a rocket off a rebound from senior Aly Baker and the final score a nice header by sophomore Carlee Williamson off a crossing pass from Euclide-Gartman.

Jackson had shots hit the post on two other occasions. Hawk had one in the first half when she dribbled unmolested up the middle before firing a shot that banged off the left post. Crites found the post in the second half following a perfect cross from Tomsu.

Jackson junior goalkeeper Sarah Blanton was called upon to make just three saves, including just one in the first half on a floating free kick.

Central assistant coach Greg Jones could do little to stem the onslaught as his squad has been decimated by injuries all season. The Tigers had fallen to Jackson 5-0 in an early season tournament.

"We're a completely different team that we were early in the season," Jones said "I've got seven [junior varsity] kids that have gotten pulled up just to try and keep a team together at this point.

"We've just had some unfortunate adversity, and we're trying to play through that as best as we can. Jackson's definitely very strong, but we're trying to figure some things out with some people at new positions."