Kristina Henry has seen opposing teams bunch several players around the goal in hopes of keeping Bentonville from scoring, but that’s not the way Fort Smith Northside did against the Lady Tigers last week.

The Lady Bears put the game solely on their defense and placed nine of their 11 players near the box, which forced Bentonville (13-4, 10-0) to take longer shots than usual.

“I’ve seen some teams do that, but not that deliberately,” Henry said. “It was definitely a test for our players, and it was causing them to get frustrated. I just kept telling them if we scored one goal, it would be like scoring five with that kind of play.”

The strategy worked throughout regulation play as the Lady Tigers couldn’t get a goal. The only problem was Northside’s strategy didn’t allow the Lady Bears any opportunities for a shot on goal, resulting in a scoreless tie at the end of regulation.

Bentonville then won the game 4-3 on penalty kicks as goalkeeper Gabby Miller blocked Northside’s first two attempts and Alyssa Carlson nailed the game-winner.

“Northside must have thought that if the game when to PKs, it would have felt like a victory,” Henry said. “It wasn’t for a lack of trying. We pulled a defender, and we had defenders pressing forward and trying to take shots.”

Henry said she doesn’t expect to see such a ploy from other teams, starting Tuesday night when Bentonville hosts Springdale High.

“Everybody wants to win, and they want to do it in their own way,” Henry said. “Heritage and Rogers have the type of players that they won’t sit back. They’re going to come at us and take us on like they are capable of doing, and Springdale’s girls are crafty and like to play.”
