The Lady Eagles dropped a 3-0 loss to a talented Hollidaysburg team on Thursday.

Tyrone played well but just couldn’t get the extra touch to get the ball across the goal line, but the experience should help the Lady Eagles prepare for their upcoming playoff game against Bellefonte, with could lead to a possible rematch with Hollidaysburg later in the playoffs.

“This past game against Hollidaysburg was a tough fought one. We played outstanding and that we’re hopefully going to keep it up for our semi-final game,” said junior Mackenzie Latchford.

Both teams came out very strong in their defensive end and no goals were scored for most of the first half.

In the last nine minutes of the half, Hollidaysburg’s Abby Bell shot on Tyrone goalkeeper Rayann Walls but the ball hit the side post of the goal. She then broke by the Tyrone player man-marking her, got the rebound from the post, and took another. Walls was unable to catch the rebound shot due to already being down from trying to receive the first shot. The ball shot past Walls and raced to the back of the net.

The Lady Eagles came back and tried to keep possession in the offensive zone, but kept getting stopped by a strong Hollidaysburg defensive line.

When the girls did get the ball past the defensive line, the Hollidaysburg keeper was always in position for the save. The first half ended with a 1-0 Hollidaysburg lead.

In the second half, both teams kept up the intensity and looked for more opportunities to score. There was equal possession of the ball for most of the half, but Hollidaysburg played aggressively and took two more shots on the net, which resulted in goals.

Hollidaysburg’s second goal came on a penalty kick in the sixty-third minute of the game after a foul was called inside the box on Tyrone on a push from behind on Hollidaysburg’s Alyssa Bell.

Bell took the opportunity to use the kick to her advantage and scored with a high kick to the right side of the net. Walls called the correct side, but couldn’t dive far enough to get the stop. The ball passed by Wall’s extended arms and glided into the net.

Tyrone kept looking for opportunities to score. They had multiple runs to the goal and shots that came very close to hitting the net. A corner kick by junior Sophia Nelson dropped in front of the net for a Chloe LaRosa header that missed the goal only by a couple of inches.

Along with Tyrone, Hollidaysburg continued to search for opportunities to score and was able to find one more goal before the end of the half.

With only a few minutes left in the game, Hollidaysburg’s Alyssa Bell was able to break the defensive line again with a pass from teammate Johnson. Bell then took a good touch before shooting on the net where it just passed Walls’s hands for the last time.

With only a few minutes left, Tyrone took many quick touches and made passes up-field. Although many shots were taken by Tyrone in the second half of the game, none of the shots were able to pass Hollidaysburg goalkeeper and defenders.

The game ended in a 3-0 loss for Tyrone.

Although the score may not show it, the Lady Eagles worked hard throughout the game and played a well-fought game against a very good team. If it wasn’t for Walls and some exceptional defensive play, the score could have been much worse.

“This season has been one of our best yet and I’m excited to see what the future holds for us next year,” said Latchford.

The Lady Eagles may not have had the winning season they wanted, but they fought and played very hard throughout the season.

Tyrone girls soccer will make an appearance at District 6 playoffs for the first time in over five years. The playoff spot was very well deserved and the Lady Eagles will continue to play hard and keep up their intensity.

“It feels so good to finally make the playoffs because this will be our first year going since I have been on the team. I think if we put in a good effort we can win this game against Bellefonte and head to the championship,” said senior Kendall Markley.

The Lady Eagles will take on Bellefonte on Thursday, October 29th at 7 p.m. at Philipsburg. Tickets will be available at the gate.

Score by Halves:

Tyrone: 0 0 — 0

Hollidaysburg: 1 2 — 3

First Half: H- Abby Bell (Unassisted) 31:12

Second Half: H- Alyssa Bell (Freekick) 63:34; H- Alyssa Bell (Johnson) 77:08