LITTLE ROCK — The Bryant Hornets shut out both of their opponents in a tournament at Little Rock Christian Academy on Saturday. Unfortunately, their opponents returned the favor.
When the first match, which was against the Cabot Panthers, went to penalty kicks in a shootout, the Hornets came up one short, 4-3.
In the second match, which was against the hosting Warriors, it went to PKs again and the Hornets were once again edged out 3-2.
“We saw some improvement this weekend,” stated Hornets coach Jason Hay. “Our defense did a great job. Collin Campbell, Jack Buck, Connor Qualls, Logan Moore and (goalkeeper) Hayden Ray didn’t give up a goal.
“We must continue to get the younger guys more confidence and experience as we get close to conference play,” he added. “We get one more shot at Cabot on Monday.”
Against Cabot, both teams made their first three penalty kicks. On the fourth round, Ray stopped Cabot’s attempt but Bryant’s Dylan Wolf couldn’t get his shot to go either. On the fifth round, the Panthers found the back of the net and, in his attempt to tie it back up, Corey Ballew was denied.
“We saw some improvement in the first game,” Hay stated. “The effort was there and we had several chances but couldn’t get a goal to fall for us.”
Of the second match, he added, “We had the majority of the possession time during the game but looked flat after the first one.”
The Hornets host Cabot on Monday then open play in the 7A/6A-Central Conference against the Siloam Springs Panthers on Friday at home.
