Marble Falls girls soccer beats Jarrell, readies for Burnet

CAPTION: Presley Kahl finds the back of the net to give the Lady Mustangs a 3-0 lead against Jarrell midway through the second half. Staff photo by Jennifer Fierro

The Marble Falls High School girls soccer team defeated Jarrell 3-0 March 5 in the final home game of District 25-4A play.

But the outcome between Burnet and Georgetown Gateway, in which the two teams played to a tie and the Lady Gators won in penalty kicks, impacts the standings.

The Lady Dawgs are the outright district champions and will enter the Class 4A playoffs as the district’s No. 1 team. And Gateway and Marble Falls have secured playoff berths.

Gateway moved to second place in the standings after the outcome against Burnet thanks to having more overall points in the district’s point system and dropped the Lady Mustangs to third. Marble Falls and Gateway split the regular season series against each other with the home team prevailing each time.

Marble Falls will play Burnet at Bulldog Field Friday, March 8, at 7 p.m. A Lady Mustang victory or a tie gives them a shot at moving up in the district standings for the playoffs. Gateway travels to play at Lago Vista.

The Lady Mustangs are in this position thanks to beating Jarrell on some fantastic play.

Marble Falls took a 1-0 lead on a header goal by Haley France from a corner kick by Miley Bolanos.

Ashley Ferreira used a dribble pass to get the ball to Bolanos for the goal and a 2-0 advantage in the first half.

Bolanos earned her second assist when she dribbled down the left side and spotted Presley Kahl in the box. Bolanos made a pass in traffic that Kahl buried in the back of the net.

“They played collectively well, which was really nice,” Marble Falls head coach Abigail Blunt said. “We didn’t drop off in the second half and we didn’t start slow in the first half. We were consistent up and down the field. You want consistent players doing the same thing.”

Meanwhile, the defense posted another shutout and was stronger in the second half, she said.

“(Jarrell) didn’t get a shot on goal in the second half,” Blunt said. “That group of three hasn’t played together except maybe one time briefly. It’s a tough game, and they played well. They played calm and they played under control.”

The Lady Mustangs secured a playoff spot when they beat Florence 5-0 March 1.

It was 1-0 at the half thanks to a France goal on an assist from Suzena Perez.

Blunt said coaches used the intermission to create a new strategy.

“We made some adjustments at halftime that paid off,” she said. “The girls connected well and took a lot of shots. We held the majority of the play.”

Kahl scored the second goal thanks to assist from Bolanos.  

Perez added the next two goals on assists from Kahl and Bolanos. 

Bolanos ended the scoring when she found the back of the net on a direct kick.

As for qualifying for the playoffs for the second year in a row and winning the final regular season game at Mustang Stadium, Blunt said a better script couldn’t have been written, particularly since the seniors were honored before kickoff.

“It was a great way to end it with a win, a win with the seniors on the field,” she said. “Making playoffs is consistency, that last year wasn’t an oopsie. Can you replicate that? It’s a program they’re building as a group. We can go back to back and it’s not just a one-time deal.”

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CAPTION: Miley Bolanos (8) has been apart of six of the Lady Mustangs last eight goals as either the shooter or the assister. Staff photo by Jennifer Fierro