The Madill High School soccer teams opened the regular season on March 2, 2021 by traveling to play the Atoka Wampus Cats. The Lady Cats took home the win and Head Coach Jose Cortes said he was pleased.
“Our season opener was a success,” he said. “We were able to play some young players and see how they will help the team this year.”
Senior Cielo Gomez led the Lady Cats in scoring with five shots to the goal, scoring two goals. Freshman Mercedes Stumblingbear had three shots to the goal and scored one goal. Cortes said the team lost some players due to graduation, and the new ones will have to fill the voids.
“The Wildcats and Lady Cats graduated some key players and the young players will need to step up and fill in those roles,” said Cortes. The Lady Wampus Cats were able to get goals. “The Lady Cats need to improve their ball control and their first touch,” Cortes said.
Junior Samara Sanchez had one shot to the goal and scored one goal. The Lady Cats beat Atoka 4 to 2.
Once the girls were finished, the Wildcats played their game. Sophomore Dilan Ortiz led the team in points, getting three shots to the goal and scored three goals. Senior Diego Ibarra took four shots on the goal and scored two goals. Even though the boys opened the season with a win, Cortes said there was still room for improvement.
“The Wildcats need to be more consistent every game,” he said.
Sophomore Rey Gómez had three shots on the goal and scored two goals. Freshman Miguel Fajardo had three shots on the goal and score one goal. Junior Ezequiel Fuentes took two shots on the goal to score one goal.
Senior Luis Hernandez had two shots on the goal and scored one goal, leading the boys to their win of 10-0. Cortes noted that the boys’ team will have the same obstacles as the girls.
“Our season will be a challenging one. Both teams have a good chance to reach the playoffs this year,” said Cortes. “We are a young team but we have the potential to be a contender this season.”
On Friday, March 5, Madill traveled to Ardmore to play the Tigers. The Lady Cats started the game in an uphill battle, trying to compete with the Lady Tigers. Cortes said the girls had their work cut out for them against Ardmore.
“The girls’ game was a battle the entire 80 minutes,” Cortes said. “Ardmore is a physical team but our girls did not back down and played hard the entire game.”
Holding Ardmore to only one goal, Madill lost the game 1 to 0. Cortes said even though they played hard, the loss came even harder.
“Our defensive effort was outstanding and we create a few chances on offense but we were not able to put the ball in the back of the net,” he said.
The Wildcats played hard but was not able to get score against the Tigers when they played after the girls’ game. Cortes said injuries and being up against a good team attributed to their loss. “The boys played their hearts out,” Cortes said. “Ardmore is an excellent team that is well coached.”
Madill tried new tactics due to a few starters being injured but lost the game 3 to 0. “
We made a few mistakes on defense that Ardmore took advantage of,” Cortes said. “We had a few chances on goal but we were not able to capitalize.”
Madill boys will host the Hugo Buffalos on March 23.