Outmanned Yellow Jackets fall to Lafayette, 2-1

Published 7:30 am Friday, January 22, 2021

Lafayette High converted a penalty kick in the 71st minute and held off a late New Iberia Senior High charge as the Mighty Lions beat NISH 2-1 Thursday night in a boys’ district soccer match.

The win dropped the Jackets to 3-8-1 overall and 0-3 in Division I, District 3.

“I told them that I was very happy with the effort with the amount of people that we currently have out due to illness or injury,” NISH coach Casey Friend said. “The COVID thing is killing me. I hate it but it’s killing us this week.

“We are out two main defenders and one forward that I can sub in. We keep tagging along with the youngsters and I’m enjoying the fact that we might be decent in the future.”

Lafayette High scored first in the 33rd minute for a 1-0 lead that Lions took into halftime.

NISH tied the game in the 63rd minute as Ethan Bailey’s corner kick was knocked in by Carson Turner. The score stayed tied until the referees awards a penalty kick to LHS with eight minutes to go and the Lions converted to come away with a 2-1 win.

The current stretch of games doesn’t get any easier for NISH as the Jackets play Southside Tuesday and Zachary Thursday.

“Both those teams are much, much better than us talent wise so if we keep playing the way we do we’ll stay in games and maybe steal one,” Friend said.

Friend said that NISH is currently hanging around the 34th seed in Division I and if his team keeps playing like they have been playing the Jackets might just be able to sneak into the playoffs.

“We just have to keep grinding,” Friend said. “That’s the way we will get better and get some wins.”