Celebrating the Clinton Tournament championship for the Lady Owls were (bottom row, from left) Nikki Cornine, Vicky Renderos, Brittney Jones, Xochitl Ruiz, Miriam Umana, Liz Hood, Amy Durham, Maddy Keller, (top row) Kelsey Griffin, Rachel Hartley, Courtney Henley, Paige Fifer, Regan Hartley, Kaitlin Chevalier, Kat Hall, Shelby McCoy and Sara Willis. (Photo contributed) [Click to enlarge]

CLINTON -- The Marshall girls' soccer team won its first championship trophy since claiming a district title in 1999 Saturday with two victories at the Clinton Tournament, both on "golden goals."

The Lady Owls went to overtime before breaking a scoreless tie in the fifth minute for a 1-0 decision in the first-round contest. Junior Vicky Renderos came up with a loose ball outside the penalty box and lofted a floater over the head of freshman goalkeeper Tabby Cox.

"I had been encouraging [Renderos] to take more shots, even if they are from a distance, because she has the capability of putting quality strikes on the net," remarked MHS head coach Josh Posegate.

Marshall's defense allowed two shots to senior Kelly Roberts during the first 15 minutes, but senior 'keeper Xochitl Ruiz turned both aside and the Lady Cardinals (0-3) didn't get close again.

The first-place match was much tougher, the Lady Owls pulling it out, 3-2 in overtime.

Marshall scored the first two goals, both by senior Paige Fifer off of Renderos feeds. Fifer got past the defense for one-and-one chances on sophomore goalie Sarah Freeze, beating her both times.

"She did a great job finishing on both attempts," Posegate said. "It's something she's been working on quite a bit, and I'm sure she is happy to see all her hard work pay off."

However, a 2-0 lead four minutes into a match is a position in which Marshall is unaccustomed, and the Lady Jays came back.

Freshman Alex Cantrell knocked an 18-yard free kick into the upper right corner with 10 minutes left in the first half, then set up senior Rachel Freeze for a short blast into the twine 13 minutes into the second half.

"We got a bit complacent when we got up 2-0," Posegate admitted. "It's not something we've dealt with on a regular basis."

The Lady Owls caught a break when Marshfield (2-2) lost its starting 'keeper late in regulation.

Senior Regan Hartley couldn't stop her momentum while following a shot and fell over Sarah Freeze, who responded with a kick. Hartley got a caution, while Freeze was given a red card and ejected.

Marshall broke through seven minutes into the extra frame. Fifer notched her first career "hat trick" by following senior Rachel Hartley's crossing pass and planting a shot into the open side of the net.

The Lady Owls (3-2), who play at NCMC rival Mexico today, have won their last three matches.

"The girls were very pumped about this day and the tournament championship," Posegate said. "It shows we can compete with anyone on our schedule."

Baseball

Hannibal 9, Marshall 3

Hannibal took advantage of six errors by the Marshall baseball team Saturday during a 9-3 NCMC win.

Two boots and a single by sophomore Jay Mosley in the top of the first inning led to Pirate runs on sacrifice fly balls off the bats of juniors Neil Hugenberg and Ian Hatton.

The Owls picked up a run in the second on singles by seniors Ethan Williams and Josh Glassmaker, the former scoring on a wild throw.

However, Hannibal got four runs, three unearned, in the third -- with senior Alan Ward stroking a two-run single to go with two other base hits, a walk and two errors.

Senior Kodi Phillips tripled and scored on a wild pitch for Marshall in the fifth, but the Pirates answered with two runs in the sixth on Hugenberg's double.

Sophomore John Lozano and senior Jared Porter singled in the sixth as the Owls closed to within 8-3, but that was all they could muster.

Hugenberg drove in three runs for Hannibal (1-2, 1-1 NCMC).

Phillips and Lozano each had two hits for Marshall (0-4, 0-1), which is scheduled to host Warrensburg today.

Boys' Tennis

Marshall 12, Moberly 0

The Marshall boys' tennis team opened NCMC action Friday with a 12-0 home win over Moberly.

The Owls had their toughest match up top, where senior Max Bildstein took an 11-9 decision at No. 1 singles over senior Joe Halterman. Seniors Taylor Scarff (10-4) and Ross Crawford (10-2), junior Mac Evans (10-2) and sophomores John Van (10-3) and Ethan Murphy (10-2) completed the singles sweep.

The first two doubles matches were fairly tight, although the teams of Scarff-Evans (10-4) and Bildstein-Murphy (10-5) got through them without too much pressure. The Van-Crawford combo won easily, 10-2.

The Spartans (0-1, 0-1 NCMC) lost each of the final three doubles tilts by 10-3 margin -- to the duos of sophomores Mark Fry and Jason Hadley, senior Matt Hockaday and sophomore Trey Clemens, and freshman Patrick Butler and sophomore Brett Clause.

Marshall (4-0, 1-0) will be on the road Tuesday at Chillicothe.