PRCC’s Abby Badurak (PRCC Athletics/Grace Kesler)
POPLARVILLE, Miss. — Friday night’s women’s soccer showdown on the pitch lived up to the billing. No. 12 Pearl River and No. 5 Holmes traded blows throughout the evening before settling on a 2-2 tie at the PRCC Soccer Complex.
“It’s always a super exciting game when we play Holmes,” PRCC coach Henrik Madsen said. “They’re a really good team and well coached. Super happy with our girls, they came out, played hard and believed in the plan that we put in place.”
Instead of attempting to sit back and absorb Holmes’ potent attack, the Wildcats flipped the script on the visitors and went at the Bulldogs early.
Abby Badurak (Gulfport) opened the game’s scoring in the third minute. The Southern Miss transfer accepted a pass from Holly Jones (Liverpool, England; Everton Football College) near the middle of the goal, settled it and calmly kicked it into the goal’s side netting. The early thunderbolt sent the home fans into a frenzy.
“We believe in our players and believed we could play with them,” Madsen said.
Jones almost doubled PRCC’s lead in the 20th minute. A corner kick found the English import all alone on the near side of the goal. Jones put a well-struck shot on goal, but Holmes’ keeper made a sprawling save to keep the Wildcats’ lead at 1-0.
Holmes (9-2-1 overall; 4-0-1 MACCC) evened things up three minutes later, scoring on a rebound.
The Bulldogs had an opportunity in the 30th minute to go ahead when they were awarded a kick just outside of PRCC’s box, but after a quick touch, the visitors sailed their attempt well wide of the intended target.
Ally Stiglets (Hattiesburg; Oak Grove) nearly pushed PRCC (5-2-2, 3-1-2) back ahead in the 39th minute when she called her own number but sent the long-range attempt narrowly over the crossbar.
The Jones-Badurak connection cashed in once again with the rainfall increasing in the waning moments of the first half. With three minutes remaining in the half, Jones crossed a ball from the left flank. Badurak one-touched the perfect pass past the keeper from point-blank range for the 2-1 advantage.
“We see that in practice, so for us, it was just a matter of time,” Madsen said. “I told (Badurak) before the game that tonight was the night for her to make some magic. She scored two great goals.
“Fantastic (performance).”
SECOND HALF
The second half got off to a quiet start — at least compared to the first 45 minutes.
Around the 68th minute, the Wildcats earned a corner kick. The Bulldogs defended well, clearing the ball to prompt a dangerous quick-strike counter. The streaking Bulldog forward split PRCC’s defenders, forcing Natasza Koper (Warsaw, Poland; LXXV Liceum Ogólnokształcące) to charge out of her net. Although the Bulldog attacker maneuvered left around the PRCC keeper, the Wildcat defenders recovered in time, and the ensuing shot safely clanked off the post.
A successful centering pass in the 78th minute tied the game 2-2.
Despite the draw, Madsen was proud of his team’s ability to take the attack to one of the nation’s most dangerous opponents on a sloppy, rain-soaked field.
“We could have sat in deeper, but that would have just invited them (to apply more pressure), so we felt we were better off going a little higher,” he said. “We challenged our back line a bit, and it worked out well. We had a great game.
“I thought the midfielders worked their tails off and our defenders, as always, were really good.”
NEXT UP
The Wildcats return to the field Tuesday for Sophomore Day against East Mississippi. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m.
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).
