PHOTO BY KIRSTIE GOODMAN
PERKINSTON — Layla Johnson doubled her season goal total with a four-goal outburst Friday night at Bary Thrash Field, leading Mississippi Gulf Coast to a 6-2 win over Southwest Mississippi.
“I was unlucky with a couple of shots, so I was very determined to get those goals back,” the freshman from Gulfport said. “I wanted to prove the conference wrong for thinking so lowly of us. I wanted to put us up on the board tonight.”
Gulf Coast remains unbeaten on the year in five games and is 2-0 in MACCC games.
Johnson got the Bulldogs on the board in the eighth minute, picking a pocket deep in the Bears end and scoring off the far post.
The Bears equalized less than a minute later, scoring the first goal on Gulf Coast this season, but Johnson reestablished the lead in the 21st minute. She missed a sitter on the 6-yard line, but moments later took a pass from Amelia Kidd (Fr., Cleveland/Bayou Academy) and looped a shot in the far netting for her second.
Azlyn Dawson (So., Taylorsville/West Jones) set up the next Gulf Coast goal with persistent pressure down the right wing. She won the ball and passed to Hailey Moore (Fr., Biloxi/Biloxi) who curled a right-footed shot in over the keeper in the 38th minute.
Johnson got the hat trick in the 63rd minute off, getting sprung by Neave Ross (So., Whitley Bay England/Whitley Bay). The fourth came two minutes later with another breakaway set up by Dana Brooks (So., Alajuela Costa Rica/Colegio Jesus Ocaña Rojas).
“She’s proving herself as the best player in the league at that position,” Gulf Coast coach Ryan Joiner said. “We’re glad to have her. She was probably frustrated tonight because she could have had seven or eight, to be honest.”
Kyla Smith (So., Hurley/East Central) converted a pass from Josey Smith (Fr., Bay St. Louis/Hancock) in the 88th minute.
Southwest got a goal from midfield in the dying minutes for the final score.
The only blemish on the evening was the two goals, but both were long-distance shots.
“Overall, it’s a good performance and we played everybody who was available and eligible tonight,” Joiner said. “We scored some good goals and probably left a few out there. Conceding two goals isn’t great, but scoring six is always nice to see.”
Raven Pernell (Fr., Kosciusko/Kosciusko) earned player of the match honors from the team. She shined on the right wing, causing problems all match long. It was a perfect counterbalance to Johnson terrorizing on the left.
“We asked her to play out wide tonight and let her start in the second half,” Joiner said. “She probably played 70 minutes tonight, and she’s starting to figure out what we want her to do. You can’t teach what she has, which is pace and athleticism. She was probably unlucky not to be on the scoresheet.”
Gulf Coast plays its first conference road match Tuesday with a trip to Wesson. Kickoff against Copiah-Lincoln is set for 5:30 p.m.
For more information on MGCCC’s 12 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.
This post originally posted at https://www.mgcccbulldogs.com/landing/index by MGCCC Athletics
