Whatever Southside soccer coach Jeremy Davis said Tuesday night seemed to work.

Boy, did it ever.

Tied at the break, after a slew of near misses, the Mavericks turned to their all-time scoring leader for a series of quick goals.

Kelly Carson scored three times in Tuesday’s win, including a tie-breaking goal at the 39:21 mark of the second half that seemed to spring-board the Mavericks to a 7-1 victory at Jim Rowland Stadium.

“I thought we were just a little bit timid,” Davis said. “We talked about getting to the ball before they dad, which is important, and we had a little bit formation in the middle. They (Central) had a good plan and made it a little bit tough on us.

“We needed to get to half to make some changes.”

Carson snapped the tie with a go-ahead goal at the 39:21 mark of the second half, and for good measure she scored again two minutes later to extend the lead to 3-1.

Carson’s hat trick broke the school’s single-season scoring record for goals (21) held by former standout Sydney Walker.

In all, Carson has 24 goals this season and 62 for her career.


“I didn’t even know about the record until a couple of weeks ago when coach Rusty (Walker) pointed it out to me,” Carson said. “I was trying to beat it, but I was also still playing the game.”

Carson, Kyla Crawford and Emily Forsgren assisted on goals as well.

The win clinched the outright 7A-Central crown for the Mavericks (14-5, 10-2).

Southside travels to Northside on Friday.

After Carson gave the Mavs some breathing room, Crawford and Mo Kleck scored at the 25:16 and 24:17 mark, respectively, for a 5-1 advantage.

“I think we were ready to get it together,” Crawford said of the second half onslaught.

Afterward, the Mavericks celebrated Senior Night with flowers and pictures.


“I think it’s bittersweet,” Crawford said. “We get to close one chapter and go on to the next.”

Senior standout Rachel Smith scored at the 11:07 mark for a 6-1 cushion, and fellow senior Lydia Hagen scored with 9:43 left.

“Our chemistry has been really good this year; we love each other,” Crawford said. “It’s really fun. You enjoy playing with them, and it’s fun to beat people.”

Southside 4, Central 1

The Southside Mavericks picked up a huge 7A-Central win Tuesday with a 4-1 state-tournament clinching win over Central.

Carlos Guerrero scored the team’s first three goals, including a game-tying goal at the 2:04 mark of the first half.

He put the Mavericks (6-11, 5-7) ahead for good at the 38:42 mark of the second half. His third goal came with 29:30 left to play.

Alex Mendoza added the final goal.