TX Girls Regional Semi-Final Recap: Standouts

McKinney, TX: The girls regional semi-finals concluded with a battle between the Marcus Marauders and Byron Nelson. It was a physical match with a lot of great defensive plays on both sides. The match was deadlocked at 0-0 after 80 minutes, and needed two over-times to decide the winner. In the 94th minute, Marauder forward [player_tooltip player_id='85949' first='Madi' last='Patterson'] nailed the game-winning strike and sent her team to the regional final where they will face South Lake. This article will highlight some of the top performers from this regional semi-final game.   Raelyn Stone is a tall, strong, and confident goal keeper. She is excellent at coming off her line, and will fly fearlessly into challenges without acting reckless. Raelyn is particularly great on set pieces and uses her frame and wingspan to go up over players to win the ball. She made several huge saves to keep her Byron Nelson team in the match, and shut down the Marauders during their usually deadly set pieces.   Tano Uzezi-itesa is a forward with blistering pace and athleticism. She was the biggest threat to the Marauder back four and created practically all of Byron Nelson's chances. Her speed gives her the ability to create a goal scoring opportunity out of nothing, and makes her difficult to play against 1v1.   Christina Clark is a big, strong, and physical defender. She is a great at 1v1 defending and man marking in her box. She has a great physical presence, consistently makes strong tackles, and goes to ground well. Despite being sent off in the second half, she made some key plays for the Wildcats.   Bella Campos is a quick forward with a high soccer IQ, a good first touch, and the ability to take on and beat defenders with ease. Bella has the ‘strikers sense' that makes her a great finisher. She can turn defenders very effectively, move off the ball quickly, and make dangerous penetrating forward runs.   [player_tooltip player_id='85949' first='Madi' last='Patterson'] is a very athletic, strong, and fast forward who is a constant goal scoring threat. She excels at making proper, well-timed forward runs. Madi is an excellent finisher and can produce goal scoring opportunities in a variety of ways. Madi scored the winning goal for the Marauders in the second over time.   [player_tooltip player_id='26342' first='Maddie' last='Hayes'] is very quick, athletic, and is incredibly good with her movement off the ball. She always seems to naturally know what space she should occupy. Her penetrating runs and movement create problems for defenders. Maddie has a deceptively powerful strike with a very quick release.   [player_tooltip player_id='26600' first='Caroline' last='Castans'] is a “Swiss army knife” kind of a player who can impact the game at both ends. She is a tall and athletic player who has a great left footed delivery. She can whip in crosses or corners with the pace and accuracy to make them very dangerous. Her passing, vision, and IQ, in addition to her athleticism, are what grant Caroline her versatility.   Sloane Denning has the look, height, strength, and tackling of a true center back. She is excellent in the air and at winning 50/50 balls. She makes good decisions at the back and is a very consistent defender for the Marauders.   [player_tooltip player_id='26620' first='Chloe' last='Adams'] is an exceptionally talented defender with a high soccer IQ and good instincts. She consistently comes up to win 50/50 challenges and has a great ability to judge where the ball is going to land. Chloe is athletic, has a strong leg, and is an excellent tackler. She is a player with a very high ceiling.   [player_tooltip player_id='26607' first='Carys' last='Torgesen'] is a very skilled and smart box to box midfielder. Carys is great on the ball and has a soft touch. She has great vision and is a fantastic distributor who can play all sorts of passes. She is a player that is frequently involved goals, and if she is not the one to score or provide the assist she is usually part of the build-up.   Marcus   [player_tooltip player_id='26607' first='Carys' last='Torgesen'], Senior, Midfielder, DSK 04 ECNL   Bella Campos, Senior, Forward - Sting ECNL Black U18/19   [player_tooltip player_id='85949' first='Madi' last='Patterson'], Freshman, Forward - Solar ECNL RL 07   [player_tooltip player_id='26342' first='Maddie' last='Hayes'], Sophomore, Forward - FCD 06 ECNL   [player_tooltip player_id='26600' first='Caroline' last='Castans'], Senior, Midfielder/Forward - DKSC U18/19 ECNL   Sloane Denning, Senior, Defender - Dallas Texans ECNL-RL U18/19   [player_tooltip player_id='26620' first='Chloe' last='Adams'], Senior, Defender, Sting Black ECNL 04   Byron Nelson   Raelyn Stone, Goal Keeper, Senior, D'Feeters ECNL-RL 04   Tano Uzezi-itesa, Forward, Junior, Sting Dallas Royal ECNL 06   Christina Clark, Defender, Senior, BVB 05/04     Mckinney Boyd vs Southlake Carroll   The intensity on the field seems to increase with every passing round of the play-offs. The regional semi-final round made for a great day full of action. The first of the semi-finals featured a McKinney Boyd side who has been playing inspired during their post season run, facing off against the powerhouse that has become Southlake Carroll. This article we will recap the match, identify the players who had the biggest impacts, and includes some short highlight clips.   Going into the game, Boyd was considered the underdog, but I'm not sure they knew that. The Broncos have been the ‘giant slayer' of the 2023 post-season, and came out looking like they might take down the biggest giant in Texas. They took the Dragons by surprise in the first half when junior midfielder, Liz Eddy got through several defenders and showed off her good vision in the final third with a ball across the box to junior forward, Elaiana Flores. Flores made the most of her opportunity and found the back of the net on a shot from 8 yards out. After getting surprised by going down in the first half, they started to pick it up and it felt like the "sleeping Dragons" had been awakened. Boyd went into the halftime break with their lead intact, but the Dragons had started to turn the dial up, and came out of halftime on a mission. The majority of the second half was dominated by Southlake, and they kept applying more and more pressure to Boyd's defense. There was the feeling that a Dragon goal was coming, and in the 49th minute sophomore midfielder, [player_tooltip player_id='26768' first='Hannah' last='Jordan']'s fantastic free kick was headed off the crossbar by [player_tooltip player_id='26337' first='Kenzi' last='Tufts'], but Madison Khan reacted quickly to pounce on the rebound and leveled the game at 1-1. The Dragons took the lead just 8 minutes later when junior right back, [player_tooltip player_id='100372' first='Kaylie' last='Harris']'s world class delivery picked out [player_tooltip player_id='26768' first='Hannah' last='Jordan'], whose perfect header from 10 yards out ended up in the side netting and gave her side the lead. With about 10 minutes remaining, freshman defender [player_tooltip player_id='26406' first='Lexi' last='Khan'] took advantage of a deflection in the box and scored to put the game to bed. McKinney Boyd put up a great fight for 80 minutes as the Dragons peppered their goal with shots forcing sophomore goal keeper, Shelby Harris to make save after save. Shelby has been outstanding all post-season, and had another great showing alongside her defense despite the loss. Boyd forced Southlake to come from behind to get the win, which is not something that has happened to them very often. The ‘Man of the Match' picks are Southlake's [player_tooltip player_id='26768' first='Hannah' last='Jordan'], and McKinney Boyd's [player_tooltip player_id='27238' first='Shelby' last='Henderson'].   It is worth noting that the Lady Dragons were without their arguably 2 best players in the match. Southlake Carroll will play Marcus with a trip to the state tournament on the line.         [player_tooltip player_id='26768' first='Hannah' last='Jordan'], Sophomore, Midfielder, Southlake, Solar 07 ECNL   [player_tooltip player_id='100372' first='Kaylie' last='Harris'], Junior, Defender, Southlake, Sting Royal ECNL 05/04   Lexi Kahn, Freshman, Midfielder, Southlake   Madison Kahn, Senior, Forward, Southlake, Dallas Texans - 05G ECNL-RL.   [player_tooltip player_id='26863' first='Kamdyn' last='Fuller'], Freshman, Forward/Midfielder, Southlake, Solar 08 ECNL   [player_tooltip player_id='26337' first='Kenzi' last='Tufts'], Junior, Midfielder/Defender, Southlake, FC Dallas U18/19 ECNL   [player_tooltip player_id='27238' first='Shelby' last='Henderson'], Sophomore, Goal Keeper, McKinney Boyd, Sting Dallas Black ECNL   Elaiana Flores, Junior, Forward/Midfielder, McKinney Boyd, Solar ECNL 06   Meg Walsh, Sophomore, Defender, McKinney Boyd, FC Dallas ‘07 ECNL   Liz Eddy, Junior, Midfielder/Forward, McKinney Boyd, FCD 05 ECNL   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/04/IMG_8801.gif?w=600" alt="" class="wp-image-127238" width="450" height="300" /></figure>   Above: [player_tooltip player_id='26863' first='Kamdyn' last='Fuller'] with a clever turn and shot. Boyd Keeper [player_tooltip player_id='27238' first='Shelby' last='Henderson'] makes a fingertip save off the cross bar.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/04/IMG_8816.gif?w=600" alt="" class="wp-image-127258" width="352" height="234" /></figure>   Southlake Goal: [player_tooltip player_id='26768' first='Hannah' last='Jordan']'s free kick headed off the cross bar by [player_tooltip player_id='26337' first='Kenzi' last='Tufts'], but Lexi Kahn scoops up the rebound to tie it up 1-1.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/04/IMG_8815.gif?w=600" alt="" class="wp-image-127256" width="493" height="329" /></figure>   Above: [player_tooltip player_id='27158' first='Parker' last='Wilkerson']'s shot denied by [player_tooltip player_id='27238' first='Shelby' last='Henderson'].   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/04/IMG_8814.gif?w=600" alt="" class="wp-image-127257" width="392" height="261" /></figure>   Southlake Goal: [player_tooltip player_id='100372' first='Kaylie' last='Harris'] with the great cross, [player_tooltip player_id='26768' first='Hannah' last='Jordan'] nods home a difficult header from 10 yards giving South Lake a 2-1 lead.

McKinney, TX: The girls regional semi-finals concluded with a battle between the Marcus Marauders and Byron Nelson. It was a physical match with a lot of great defensive plays on both sides. The match was deadlocked at 0-0 after 80 minutes, and needed two over-times to decide the winner. In the 94^th minute, Marauder forward Madi Patterson Madi Patterson F Marcus | 2026 State TX nailed the game-winning strike and sent her team to the regional final where they will face South Lake. This article will highlight some of the top performers from this regional semi-final game.