POPLARVILLE, Miss. — No. 14 Pearl River women's soccer celebrated Sophomore Night in style Tuesday, rolling to a dominant 4-0 victory over Copiah-Lincoln behind a dazzling four-goal performance from Alesha Gale (Rotherham, England).
"It was sophomore night, so the emotions were high," head coach Henrik Madsen said. "Copiah-Lincoln came out organized and ready. We missed some chances, and things got a little stressful. We talked at halftime, then came out hot in the second half."
Gale's display was one for the record books, marking the first four-goal game by a Wildcat since Rena Gordon accomplished the feat on Sept. 19, 2018.
"Alesha is what we thought she was," Madsen said. "We brought her in to be a difference maker, and tonight she proved it. She's willing to take risks and take over games."
The first half was a defensive showcase, as Pearl River (7-3 overall, 3-3 MACCC) and Copiah Lincoln (4-3-2, 2-2-2) battled for control and went into halftime locked at 0-0. Pearl River controlled possession for much of the opening 45 minutes, creating several chances but couldn't capitalize.
That changed in the 52nd minute, when Gale broke the deadlock with her first goal of the night, a composed ground shot past a diving CLCC goalkeeper.
The Wildcats struck again shortly after. Margaret Compretta (Waveland; Our Lady Academy) slipped a pass inside to Gale, who rolled out to her right and powered a shot through two defenders into the back of the net to double the lead, 2-0.
Gale completed her hat trick in style, capitalizing on a deflected ball that ricocheted off two Wolves. The freshman calmly chipped it in to make it 3-0.
She wasn't done there. In the 86th minute, Gale collected a loose ball off a Copiah-Lincoln header and curved it into the net, capping off the Wildcat scoring and earning herself her fourth of the night.
Pearl River's defense held firm to preserve the clean sheet in what was a memorable night for the team and its sophomores.
NEXT UP
The Wildcats head to East Mississippi Friday for a noon kickoff against the Lions. The match will be livestreamed at EMCCLive.com.
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