Lampasas varsity soccer teams compete in weekend tournaments
PHOTOS BY RICHARD AKRIDGE Forward Marc Campisi (5) races down the pitch with a Stratford player during the Badgers’ tournament-opening loss in Killeen Friday morning. The second half did the Badgers in, over and over again this weekend.
Lampasas gave up 12 goals in the second halves of three losses during the T.J. Zimmer Memorial Tournament at Leo Buckley Stadium in Killeen Friday and Saturday.
The disappointing performance drops the team’s overall record to 0-8 with the district schedule to begin one week from today.
Lampasas got off to a rough start in its opening match as Stratford posted its first goal a little over two minutes into the contest.
It was all downhill from there, as the Spartans scored four first-half goals en route to a 7-0 shutout victory.
Almost 18 minutes after Stratford scored its first goal on a deflection that ricocheted off the left goal post, a Spartan delivered a header past Badger goalkeeper Alex Rininger for a 2-0 lead.
Sophomore Hunter Stephens gains control of the ball against the Spartans. Stratford went on to score five more goals off 14 shots on goal in the match.
Lampasas attempted just five shots against the Spartans, who advanced to the championship round before falling to Round Rock Stony Point 1-0.
An hour and a half later, the Badgers returned to the pitch for their second match of Bracket 1 play and faced the Shoemaker Grey Wolves.
Lampasas limited Shoemaker -- a team it lost to at the Marble Falls tournament -- to one goal and six shots in the first half before losing control shortly after halftime.
Shoemaker scored three goals in the first 11 minutes of the second half and added a fourth minutes later to blow the match wide open and cruise to a 5-0 win.
Lampasas did not attempt a shot on goal in the second half. It finished with two for the match. Rininger recorded 10 saves in the loss.
The Badgers concluded play Saturday morning against Harker Heights and, once again, played well in the first half before watching the match slip away after the break.
The teams went into halftime tied at 0-0, but the Badgers were playing without the luxury of substitutions and the Knights wore them down in the second half, scoring six goals in the shutout victory.
“The Badgers did play an impressive first half versus Harker Heights,” Lampasas head coach Greg Porter said. “Rininger had 24 saves against the explosive [Knights’] offense.”
Lampasas is off until Friday, when it concludes non-district play on the road against Killeen Ellison.
The Badgers host Leander Rouse in the district-opener next Tuesday at 7:45 p.m.
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The Lady Badgers gained their first victory of the season and some much-needed momentum at the Knights of Columbus Tournament in Stephenville over the weekend.
After dropping their first seven matches of the season, the Lady Badgers defeated Fort Worth Polytechnic 2-0 in their final match Saturday. Senior midfielder/ forward River Hooks scored both goals in the victory.
Lampasas opened the tournament with a 2-0 loss to Waco University Friday morning before falling to the host Honeybees 4-0.
“I thought we played an incredible first half and played hard in the second half [against Stephenville],” Lampasas head coach Mark Guszak said. “This was a good game for us regardless of the score.”
The Lady Badgers return to the pitch tonight against Austin McCallum at the Burger Center. The match is set to begin at 7 p.m.
Friday evening, Lampasas wraps up its non-district schedule with a home match against Fredericksburg.
The Lady Badgers travel to Leander Rouse for their districtopener next Tuesday at 7:45 p.m.









