When Carson High's girls play Hug in soccer, the question isn't whether the Senators will win, but by how many goals they will win by.
Carson dominated in Saturday's 4-0 win over the visiting Hawks, improving to 10-0-1 and inching closer to a regular-season title. Carson visits Douglas Tuesday night.
The match was stopped by the head referee with 9 minutes 41 seconds left after Hug's Vivian Barrera knocked Carson's Kenzie Tillitt down from behind. Barrera was given a red card and started off the field. She abruptly changed course and started to run at Tillitt. Carson fullback Natalie Stevens stepped in front of Barrera so she couldn't get at Tillitt, who was eventually walked over to the sidelines by two teammates.
The officials huddled briefly and then met with the coaches, and then declared that the game was over. The teams shook hands after the game, but that was monitored very closely by the game officials and Carson coaching staff. Things were still very tense after the match, so Carson coach Randy Roser didn't let his team leave the field until Hug had boarded its bus.
"I've seen that (happen) on the boys side," Roser said. "It's the first time I've seen that in a girls game."
Maybe it was frustration and maybe it was a dirty, malicious act. Either way, Barrera deserves to be punished, and one game really isn't enough. Her behavior was less than sporting.
"I fell on my back (when she hit me)," Tillitt said. "She said 'stay down No. 2.' I'm not going to take that kind of stuff, so I got up. I wanted to look her in the eye and let her know that she can't do that. I didn't say anything to her.
"I've never had anybody come at me like that before. Natalie took the brunt of it. I didn't get touched. I'm glad my team loves me. I didn't do anything because I didn't want to get a red card with the Douglas game (coming up)."
It was a bizarre ending to a rather ho-hum game. Carson outshot Hug 17-4. Hug got off just one shot on goal in the final 31 minutes of the game.
"We played OK," Roser said. "We moved the ball well. We had a lot (more) opportunities to score."
That was never more true than for Kiahna Pimental, who scored Carson's first two goals, but probably could have had at least two more because she got some great looks at the goal.
Pimental scored her first goal in the seventh minute, taking a through ball from Arran Rumbaugh and easily beating the Hug keeper.
Carson had a breakaway mysteriously called back on an offsides by the official on the Hug sideline. Several of his calls left Roser scratching his head. Roser, of course, refused to comment on the officiating.
PImental scored her second goal in the 22nd minute when she belted a high kick just over the reach of the Hug goalie. Pimental had two more good opportunities in the first half, but was unable to convert.
"I couldn't have done it (scored) without the help of my teammates," Pimental said. "The team pulled together and we didn't let up. I have to work on finishing plays."
Eliza Matley made it 3-0 early in the second half, and Josie Daggs completed the scoring with a goal in the 64th minute.