Spring Hill hands Louisburg its first loss of season

The Louisburg girls soccer team had a couple streaks fade away Thursday following its home match against Spring Hill.

The Wildcats, which had won five games in a row and had yet to give up a goal this season, saw those both come to an end following a 3-0 setback to Broncos. Spring Hill, which is the favorite to win the Frontier League, gave the Wildcats their toughest test of the season to date.

Louisburg also had to battle Mother Nature, who brought gusty winds and cold temperatures. Still, the Wildcats found some positives to take away from their loss.

“Last year, we were 100 percent embarrassed by our results against them in both games,” Louisburg coach Kyle Conley said. “We were focused and more determined to play our game (Thursday). The weather conditions were absolutely brutal, but with that being said we played with an incredibly high work rate. The girls left it all on the field and definitely didn’t back down. I think overall, it was our best team effort so far this season.

“We had a few opportunities but couldn’t capitalize. It is the effort that I want to see in every game and have been asking for.”

Senior Reese Johnson and sophomore Hailey Sword had the lone shots for Louisburg. Spring Hill outshot the Wildcats, 21-2, but goalie Sierra Hahn did her best to keep the Broncos out of the net with 10 saves.

Spring Hill took a 1-0 lead midway through the first half on a goal from Isabella Farris, and the Wildcats trailed by just the one goal at halftime.

Early in the second half, Spring Hill doubled its lead on a shot from Reagan Downes, and then followed it up a just a couple minutes later on a direct kick goal from Payton Vogelbacher.

Despite getting down three goals, the Wildcat defense didn’t allow a score in the final 35 minutes.

“We defended really well, and with missing players, and a couple players not nearly 100 percent, I thought we did well,” Conley said. “We would have liked to seen a ball in the back of the net for us, but I thought we played well. We will use this to get better and clean up some things. It was a good game and I thought we did well staying organized defensively.”

Louisburg will try and bounce back today as it travels to Eudora for a Frontier League match. Varsity is set to begin at approximately 6 p.m.