Haylie Alvarez (Gulfport; St. Patrick) moves the ball down the pitch. (Karisa West/PRCC Athletics)
POPLARVILLE, Miss. — Deadlocked with Meridian in the dying seconds of Friday night’s match, the No. 11 Pearl River women’s soccer team needed a hero and Haylie Alvarez (Gulfport; St. Patrick) was up for the challenge.
A ball into the box by the Wildcats (4-2-1 overall; 3-1 MACCC) was headed away by a Meridian (6-3; 2-2) center back and made its way out to the crashing Alvarez. The sophomore forward took one touch and then fired a shot into the back of the net with 53 seconds left on the clock to propel the Wildcats to a 2-1 victory.
“It was a little scary because I knew it was up to me,” Alvarez said. “I kept calm, took my shot and it went in.”
“Haylie took a great first touch and was nice and composed with her shot,” head coach Henrik Madsen said. “She sent it right into the upper 90 just like she does every day in practice.”
The Wildcats had to work for the victory after falling behind three minutes into the night.
“It was a terrible start to the game, but I am proud of the girls for their fight,” Madsen said. “I felt like they dug in and battled. It wasn’t a clean game by any means. Meridian is well-organized, so they are always hard to beat.”
Pearl River found its equalizer just before halftime in the 43rd minute. The whistle was blown when Meridian had a handball in the box. The Wildcats sent out sophomore forward Federikke Nielsen (Randers, Denmark) to take the shot, and she slotted it home with ease, 1-1.
Moments away from a draw, Alvarez sent home the game-winner to propel Pearl River to victory, 2-1.
NEXT UP
The Wildcats continue their homestand Sunday with a noon kickoff against National Park.
TICKETING
Tickets are on sale now at PRCCAthletics.com/Tickets. Tickets purchased in advance are $8. Tickets purchased on gameday are $10. Season passes can be purchased for $56.
TUNE IN
All Pearl River home soccer games are livestreamed for free at PRCCMedia.com/Gold. Fans who have Roku, Amazon Fire or Apple TV devices can also watch the Wildcat broadcasts by downloading the “Pearl River CC” channel from their app stores.
For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on X (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics).
