By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Nixa’s Aubrey Posegate has defense in her heart.
Scoring opportunities are rare for the sophomore defender.
“I’m always on defense, playing center defender or outside back,” Posegate said. “For club, I play defense. For Nixa, I usually play wing or defense. So, I’m never up top.”
Posegate finally got her moment in the offensive spotlight Thursday night – against one of Nixa’s biggest rivals, no less.
She scored the game-winner as Nixa defeated Kickapoo 1-0 on a rainy night in Springfield.
The goal was the first in Posegate’s career – for club or school.
“I’ve always wanted to get a goal,” Posegate said. “But I love defending, too.”
As a swing player for last season’s district title-winning team, Posegate played on Nixa’s JV and varsity. Scoring chances still eluded her.
“Even last year on JV, we’d put her up top sometimes and she still wouldn’t score,” Nixa coach Evan Palmer said. “What a huge goal for her, what a huge goal for this team.
“Whenever you beat Kickapoo, it’s a great game.”
Posegate scored midway through the second half, after a Nixa corner kick bounced amid traffic in front of the Kickapoo net. The ball found its way toward Posegate, who buried it home.
“It feels amazing and it’s great to have this opportunity with this team because they’re amazing players,” Posegate said. “This is an amazing team. Everyone’s very competitive at practice and everything. And they’re very supportive as well.”
Thursday night’s win was the latest accolade in an impressive season thus far for Nixa, which improved to 11-1 overall and 6-0 in the Central Ozark Conference.
Among local competition, the Lady Eagles own wins over the likes of Willard, Republic, Kickapoo and Springfield Catholic.
Last weekend in the Kickapoo Shootout, Nixa notched two wins against strong out-of-area competition (Timberland, Lee’s Summit West).
The Lady Eagles will also play at two St. Louis Schools – Francis Howell Central and Cor Jesu Academy – in early May. The lone blemish thus far was a 3-0 road loss at Blue Springs South in the first week of the season.
“We had a fantastic weekend (at the Kickapoo Shootout),” Palmer said. “We want to put ourselves against those good teams, because those are the types of teams we might see if we make it to the postseason.”
Kickapoo’s defense and freshman goalkeeper Gia Current helped the Lady Chiefs stay level through the first 40 minutes. Current made a diving save in the 23rd minute to deny a would-be Nixa goal following a rebound opportunity in traffic.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
The Lady Chiefs (10-4 overall, 5-1) have allowed one or fewer goals in 12 of their 14 matches.
As the rain picked up in the second half, Nixa’s advantage in shots and possessions increased. The Lady Eagles can lean on their depth to keep their starters fresh, Palmer said.
Thursday’s hero – Posegate – is part of that bench unit.
“We feel like when we get our subs in, second half, we’ve got the energy,” Palmer said. “We try to get everybody off, as many as we can. They get a little rest so by the end of the game, they have a little more left in the tank.”
Kickapoo will host Pembroke Hill for a Saturday afternoon match this weekend. Nixa returns to action on Monday night at Glendale.
Nixa and Kickapoo could meet again for a rematch in next month’s Class 4 District 5 Tournament, which will be hosted at Kickapoo. The Lady Eagles prevailed in last year’s district title game, snapping Kickapoo’s six-year title streak.
The Nixa-Kickapoo series continues to be tight. Since 2016, nine of the 12 matchups have been decided by a one-goal margin.
