The Henderson Lady Lions officially clinched the district title with a 3-1 victory over Spring Hill on Monday afternoon. They hoped their Friday game against Carthage would be the one to do it, but that one came down to a 0-0 tie in overtime and a narrow 3-2 shootout loss.
Friday was a hard day but not the end of the world according to coach Oscar Guevara. “We realized that we’re not unbeatable,” he said. “It’s best it happens right now. We can learn that feeling so it doesn’t happen during the playoffs.”
He told the teary-eyed team afterward not to worry about it and that it was ultimately just a learning process.
Monday’s win was certainly a morale booster and Guevara was happy to be able to officially call them champions. “They deserve it. They’ve worked really hard.”
Meanwhile, the Henderson varsity boys clinched third place in the standings on Friday with a 2-0 win over Carthage and they can potentially inch into second place should Center lose their last district game this week.
Head coach Jorge Cardenas said that leading up to the game on Friday they concentrated on their finishing efforts. “We knew that we were going to have a challenge with Carthage’s great goalkeeper,” he said.
Diego Cañenguez scored both goals for Henderson there, first from outside the box on a skillful power shot past the Carthage keeper and the second from the penalty mark after a defender fouled Adrian Saucedo.
“[Cañenguez] has helped us with his defensive skills and speed the first part of the season. But he can also play outside mid and be a provocative offensive player,” said Cardenas. “Adrian gave a great performance with his speed and agility.”
The Lions wrapped up their own district games on Monday at Spring Hill, where a lack of players for the Panthers meant the game became a lighthearted scrimmage with five Henderson players donning practice jerseys to join the opposing team.
The Bi-district playoff round for both teams will take place between March 23 and 25.
