Persistence and effort eliminate disappointment and frustration.
Despite outplaying the South Tahoe Vikings in the first half Saturday at the Community Youth Sports Complex, the Douglas Tigers were locked in a scoreless tie.
They didn't let the soccer injustice bother them.
Douglas continued their strong effort in the final 40 minutes, outscoring South Tahoe 3-0 in a key Sierra League girls' soccer match.
"That was a great win for us," said Douglas assistant coach Kelli Day, who was filling in for Lorraine Fitzhugh, who was attending an out-of-town wedding. "I wasn't worried, the girls weren't worried. They just had to step it up a little bit."
That meant, pressuring the Vikings more, and it paid off.
The Tigers controlled the tempo of the match, reaching the loose balls first and making short, accurate passes.
"Douglas played like we normally like to play, and we just didn't adjust well today," said STHS coach Clint Lockhart. "We panicked a little bit and started kicking balls up instead of playing to the open spot."
Tia Lyons, Jessica Vega and Alex Laing each netted a second-half goal as the Tigers improved to 4-1 in the league standings. South Tahoe dropped to 2-2-1.
STHS keeper "Mickey" Segers blanked the Tigers in the opening half and finished with 16 saves.
"They probably had 19 shots on goal compared to our three or four.
Eventually we just broke down," Lockhart said. "The defense actually played very well. Even the shots Douglas made in the second half were good shots."
