Northwest soccer splits at Jones College; Women win 6-1, Men fall 6-1

Photo: Joline Knevel was one of six Rangers to score in their 6-1 win over #7 Jones College on Tuesday night. (Maylee Willhite/nwccrangers.com)

ELLISVILLE, Miss. – The Northwest Mississippi Community College soccer teams split a conference doubleheader at Jones College on Tuesday, with the #3-ranked women securing a dominant 6-1 victory while the men fell 6-1 to the #10-ranked Bobcats.

The #3-ranked Lady Rangers (12-1-1, 7-1-1) shook off their lone loss of the season by taking immediate control against #7 Jones College (8-3-2, 5-2-1).

Caroline Hamm opened the scoring just 1:01 into the match, finishing a rebound for her seventh goal of the season. Molly Thompson extended the lead to 2-0 in the 17th minute.

After Jones College answered with a goal from Riley Rolison in the 23rd minute, the Rangers offense quickly responded. Caroline Perkins scored in the 34th minute, followed by a first-half goal from Emme Jensen, her 22nd of the season. Jensen’s goal, assisted by Maggie Pace, pushed the sophomore standout past the 100-point mark for her career.

Northwest added two more goals in the second half. Joline Knevel struck in the 61st minute, sailing a free kick over the goalie’s hands from near midfield. Mary Logan Clark capped the scoring in the 63rd minute.

The Rangers dominated the match, taking 30 total shots with two-thirds of them on goal. The win clinches at least a top-three finish in the conference standings for Northwest.

In the men’s match, the Rangers (4-10-2, 1-8) played the #10 Bobcats to a 1-1 tie in a defensive first half before being overpowered in the second.

Jones struck first on a Matt Reed penalty kick in the fifth minute. Northwest provided a quick answer when Ariel Vallejo scored in the ninth minute, assisted by Francisco Ambrioso, to tie the match 1-1.

The second half belonged to Jones College. Lucas Ekfeldt broke the tie in the 48th minute, and Reed scored his second goal just 30 seconds later to make it 3-1. Reed completed his hat trick on another penalty kick in the 64th minute and added his fourth goal in the 68th. Ekfeldt scored again in the 80th minute to finalize the 6-1 score.

Northwest was held to two total shots in the game. Goalkeeper Jacob Little made five saves in the second half while facing 14 shots from the Bobcats.

Both Northwest teams will return home to the Ranger Soccer Complex on Friday for sophomore night activities against Southwest Mississippi Community College. The women play in the afternoon, followed by the men at 7 p.m. They will close out the regular season on the road Oct. 28 at Copiah-Lincoln Community College.