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Smoky Mountain soccer team loses MAC contests to Franklin, Tuscola
Smoky Mountain’s soccer team dropped a pair of Mountain Athletic Conference games last week at Carr Hooper Stadium/Babe Howell Field.
The Lady Mustangs (2-5, 1-4) lost a 4-1 decision to Franklin on March 23 and fell 7-1 to Tuscola last Thursday.
Tiffany Allen scored three times, and the Lady Panthers also took advantage of an own goal in the 4-1 win.
SM scored first when Carrilea Potter connected in the opening minutes.
“I felt we were OK after we scored that goal,” Coach Lyman Whisman said. “We had other opportunities to score, but we didn’t finish very well.”
He said Franklin got off just six shots while the Lady Mustangs took 13. SM’s Amy Haggard made two saves.
“I thought we were up for the game,” Whisman said. “They had a lot of speed. They sent four people forward, and we didn’t do anything to counter that.”
Despite being out shot 30-2 in the 7-1 loss to Tuscola, Whisman felt better about the performance of his team than he did against Franklin. The deficit was just 2-0 at halftime.
“Our girls played a really good game, and it helped our confidence,” he said. “Tuscola has a number of skilled players, but we held our own.”
Sarah Lee and Lauren Ross both had a pair of goals for the Lady Mountaineers.
SM’s only score was an own goal midway through the second half. Whisman gave credit to Potter for making the play happen.
“Carrilea put pressure on their back, and a girl tried to clear it,” Whisman said. “When she kicked the ball, it went backward instead of going forward.”
Haggard made 14 saves before leaving with a broken finger. She was replaced by Laury Brown, who made three saves.
Whisman said Haggard would be out anywhere from one to six weeks. Brown, who been moved from forward to a defensive position, will now take over at goalie, the coach said.
He said Melissa Gispert will likely move into Brown’s defensive spot. The coach singled out Gispert and Katie Hayes, a pair of freshmen, for their play on defense against Tuscola.
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