Freshman scores hat trick as Midlothian Heritage routs Calallen for 4A championship
Midlothian Heritage left no doubt which team would win the girls soccer UIL Class 4A state championship Friday morning as the Jaguars dominated from the start during their 6-0 rout over Corpus Christi Calallen at Birkelbach Field.
“Our motto this year is NPLS, no place like state. These girls wanted it and knew that was our goal coming into the year,” Heritage coach Gerald Slovacek said. “We prepared ourselves and tested ourselves. We strive for competitive games. The girls live for that. Today we turned them loose and they played Jaguar soccer.”
Calallen (23-2), making its first trip to state, couldn’t handle the Heritage attack as the Jaguars got off several shots and corner kicks within the first five minutes.
Freshman Jules Burrows capped off a terrific first season to her high school career with a hat trick, including a two-goal effort within the first 11 minutes.
Sydney Dickson booted a pass from the left of the box that found Burrows in front of the net. Burrows slammed the pass which deflected off a defender and into the goal in the sixth minute.
“We worked our butts off and we play for each other. It’s an amazing feeling,” Dickson said. “So proud and excited, it doesn’t feel real yet.”
Brynn Pollock lined up for six corner shots in the first half, one of which came in the eighth minute when her kick bounced to Dickson, who then found Kerry Scott for the goal and 2-0 lead.
“We observed their formation and saw that their back side kind of went unmarked so we capitalized on it,” Dickson said. “We have very strong outside players that know how to get the ball into the box and into the goal.”
Burrows scored again in the 11th minute and Rachel Allen, a senior captain that was voted 4A state MVP in 2018, booted a try about 30 yards out that was just high enough over the Calallen goalkeeper in the 16th minute.
Heritage (27-1), which ends the season with a 16-game winning streak and 36-1 goal differential in the playoffs, wins its second title since 2018 when it beat Jasper, 2-1, in overtime.
Burrows was voted MVP. She finished with six shots and five on goal.
“I think we came in with so much energy and we were so excited,” Burrows said. “I didn’t expect three. I wanted one, but three is good too.”
“I told Jules this season there is no pressure on her. She’s a freshman. But in this moment, the biggest game, she stepped up,” Slovacek added. “She did a fantastic job. It doesn’t shock me at all.”
The scoring went quiet in the final 24 minutes of the first half with Heritage earning more possession. The Wildcats had a couple attempts to attack, but the back line of the Jaguars stood strong.
It wasn’t until the 53rd minute when Heritage found the back of the net again on Burrows’ third goal of the game. Joely Godfrey lined up for a free kick about 40 yards and to the right.
Her ball found Allen who scooted it past the Calallen keeper. Laramie Miller, who set a new 4A state championship game record 10 saves, was able to get a hand on the ball, but couldn’t secure it. The ball rolled toward the goal line where Burrows finished off the play.
Dickson, who finished with a UIL state tournament record three assists (any classification), got in on the scoring late in the game when Pollock’s free kick bounced near the goal and the junior forward beat Miller for the 6-0 margin.
Calallen only attempted two shots with one on goal.
“We came into the game with high energy and ready to go, and we kept pushing,” Pollock said.
“Defense played phenomenal,” Allen added. “They work really well and all in all, our chemistry is so good.”
The Jaguars’ five assists is a new UIL state tourney record in any class. Their six goals tied the 2016 Kennedale squad for the most scored in a 4A state game. Burrows is the sixth player in any class to score three times in a state championship, and second in 4A since Kennedale’s Allie Thornton netted four in 2015.
Of the 22 players on the roster, Heritage graduates five in Allen, defender Savanna Conde, midfielder Kylar Kenter, midfielder Hannah Dorsey and keeper Jaedyn Barela.
This story was originally published April 16, 2021 at 1:30 PM.
