Lady Hornets’ second-half push defeats Benton
EDITOR’S NOTE: Because the look back at each day in Bryant athletic history has been so favorably received during the time when there was no sports during the COVID-19 shutdown, BryantDaily.com will continue posting past stories of Bryant athletics either posted on BryantDaily.com (from 2009 to the present) or published in the Bryant Times (from 1998 to 2008).
By Chris Morgan
BENTON — The Bryant Lady Hornets traveled to Benton for the always tense rivalry game against the Lady Panthers on Friday night and came away with a 5-1 victory.
The Lady Hornets brought their usual dominance in the midfield, similar to that of the Russellville game, however, they gave up the first goal to Benton with 22:39 left in the first half.
That would not faze the Lady Hornets one bit. Within three minutes, Bryant would strike in a goal of their own, as the Benton keeper misplayed the ball to her defender giving freshman Ashton Inman the open opportunity to slip in a goal.
The first half offered both teams opportunities to score but neither team could seal the deal as the half ended in a 1-1 tie.
The trends of the first half would not continue in the second.
Corners were big for the Lady Hornets in the second half, helping to produce two goals. The first of which came early, at the 37:32 mark, as Jad’n NIchols knocked in a goal to snap the tie.
The goal would create a chain reaction for the Lady Hornets. Their next goal came with 31:51 left. Senior Jessica Butler tapped one in as Bryant began to out endurance the Lady Panthers.
With 20 minutes left until the final whistle, the Lady Hornets continued to roll, producing again off a corner kick. This time, junior Alyssa Fasson used a well-placed header, redirecting the ball into the top right corner, stumping the Lady Panther keeper.
The night was still not over for Bryant and for the Lady Panther collapse. Minutes after the Lady Hornets’ fourth goal, junior Maddison Humbard scored with 18:34 left in the half.
The rest of the match was used as experience for the subs as the Lady Hornets carried their 5-1 lead until the final whistle.
Next, the Lady Hornets travel to Fort Smith Northside, on Tuesday, March 13, to start 7A-Central Conference play.
