WINNEMUCCA - It was not the way the Lowry High School girls soccer team wanted to end its slate of home matches.
The Lady Bucks honored seven seniors on Tuesday afternoon, but rival Spring Creek played party crasher with a 1-0 win in windy and dusty conditions.
"We had a hard time getting going today," said LHS head coach Chris Entwistle. "We could never get adjusted to the wind. Once we had it figured out it would change. We really never clicked on offense and played most of the match in the middle third of the field. Neither team had a bunch of great opportunities. We weren't ourselves today."
The lone goal of the afternoon came in the 34th minute off a Spring Creek corner kick. The Spartans put the ball into play and Kayla Hecht slid through the box and was able to tip the ball into the net.
"It was just a breakdown on our part," Entwistle said. "We did not mark up properly on defense and she was able to get through for the goal. I am not sure if she slid on purpose, but she put the ball in the perfect place."
Each team had its chance throughout the match, with Lowry goalkeeper Savannah Ingram making a save in the 38th minute, preventing Spring Creek from adding to its lead. Buckaroo defender Caitlynn Cooper saved another Spartan goal from going in as she stopped a shot that got past Ingram as she came out to play the ball.
Lowry's best chance to score in the first half was on a shot in the 35th minute by Monique Rodriguez but it was knocked away by Spring Creek goalie Jasmin Giere. The Lady Bucks' Maddie Mitch had a free kick in the 56th minute that was also knocked away.
"It's hard to lose these games and I feel bad for our seniors," added the coach. "It's a match we wanted to win in the worse way. We have seven girls graduating, all of them starters. It would have been nice to get them one more home game for them."
With the loss, the Lady Bucks dropped to 7-8-3 overall, 2-7-1 Division I-A and 5-3 in Ruby Mountain League play.
This past Saturday, Lowry was looking to pull off an upset on a road trip to Elko. The league-leading Indians had other ideas and ran away with the 9-0 victory. It was the second win of the year for the Indians over the Lady Bucks.
"We didn't play very well," said Entwistle. "Elko jumped on us quickly and never let up. They were out there to show that they were the best team in the league."
Elko scored four times in the first 10 minutes of the match and six in the first 22 minutes. Lowry had the opportunity to score in the 15th minute on a penalty kick, but Elko goalkeeper RaeLynn Forcella made the save on the shot.
The Indians' MaKayla Jenkins scored the first goal two minutes in to the match and Elko scored three more times in an eight-minute span on goals by Michele Yoga, Natalie Kump and a second goal by Jenkins.
Elko led 6-0 at halftime and produced three more goals in the final 40 minutes of play to account for the final outcome.
Lowry is off this weekend and returns to the field on Thursday at Ely for a 2 p.m. start with White Pine. The Buckaroos close out the regular season on Friday, Oct. 26, in West Wendover at 10 a.m.
"The main thing is we are in the playoffs," Entwistle said. "We have some time to rest and heal up. The match with White Pine will be a tough one. We will probably practice on the track on the football field to get ready for that match. They have field turf on their field and the ball plays fast. If we can control the ball on the track we should be able to do it on turf. We want to get ready for the playoffs. Right now, it is up in the air for who we are going to play."
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