Photo by Samantha Davis: Marshall eighth grade goalkeeper Tristynn Justesen saves a shot attempt while junior defender Kathryn Gordon (5) secures the ball in her possession against Sioux Falls Christian Tuesday night. The Tigers fell to the Chargers 5-0.

MARSHALL — The Marshall girls soccer team had a strong first-half defensive effort when it took on Sioux Falls Christian Tuesday night in a non-conference matchup, but ultimately suffered a 5-0 loss when the Chargers took control early in the second half. Tuesday was also the first of a five-game homestand for the Tigers.

“We did really good stepping to the ball and being on our toes,” junior captain Abby Wing said regarding Marshall’s first-half defense. “We were anticipating the ball. We were hustling and covering each other when [we] got beat, and we were already there.

Marshall’s defense kept Sioux Falls Christian locked up the entire first half, with a tenacious effort in the net from eighth grader Tristynn Justesen, who had six saves in the first half during her minutes played. She was subbed out about midway through the opening half due to not feeling well, when sophomore Emma Messenbrink took over for the remainder of the game, who also had a total of eight saves on the night.

Sophomore Elsie Deutz, junior captain Kathryn Gordon and Wing each applauded both Justesen and Messenbrink for their aggressive performances in the net, and their protection efforts while the Chargers continued to attack.

“Emma really stepped up with being put in,” Gordon said. “Especially without having any warmup prior … You couldn’t even tell there was a change. It was really good.”

The majority of the game was spent in Marshall’s territory, as the Chargers made it a habit to keep control of their possession. After a competitive first half between both teams, they began to pressure the Tigers and came out red-hot to open the second half with four unanswered goals through the first 10 minutes.

Marshall dealt with a few injuries on the night that sidelined some starters with a lot of game time left, offering another challenge to work through. Gordon went down after colliding shins in the first half while attacking on defense, and freshman forward Maddie Hoefer also went out in the second half after colliding with a player on a kick.

Deutz had a few good looks offensively for Marshall throughout the night, yet Sioux Falls Christian’s defense was also able to limit how close the Tigers were able to crash toward the net.

Eighth grader Miriam Wing also closed in for a near goal in the game’s final minutes, as Marshall continued to show fight, but came up just short.

The Chargers started their offensive surge to open the second half in the 46th minute, scoring off a corner kick. Just under two minutes later, they deepened their lead with another shot into the back right of the net, keeping the ball on Marshall’s side of the field.

Sioux Falls Christian didn’t let up off the gas and it continued to extend to a comfortable lead, scoring another goal in the 50th minute after kicking the ball across to the right side of the goal and sending it to the back left of the net.

“I feel like we came out strong [in the second half], but we definitely didn’t have as much energy as the first half,” Gordon said.

Less than a minute later came the Chargers’ fourth goal, and their fifth followed six minutes later, putting the dagger on Marshall’s opportunities to initiate a comeback as time was winding down.

“They came out a lot stronger than us,” Wing said. “They wanted it more than we did.”

Sioux Falls Christian entered the night 2-3 on the season, coming off a pair of losses most recently to Dakota Valley and Stevens of South Dakota.

Following Tuesday, Marshall has gotten off to a 1-6 start to begin the season with its young core of a roster. The Tigers this year hold just two seniors in defender Abbey Foley and midfielder Autumn Deutz, and two juniors in Gordon and Wing. The rest of the lineup consists of 15 combined eighth graders to sophomores.

Marshall secured its first win of the season last Tuesday in dominant fashion over Worthington, 6-0, behind Deutz’s hat-trick performance.

The Tigers also had a strong showing on Thursday, but dropped a close battle to Fairmont, 3-2.

Marshall (1-6) will remain at home for the week, and will next host New Ulm at 7 p.m. The Tigers will then take on St. James Area at 1 p.m. on Saturday.

“I’m really excited [about the long homestand],” Gordon said. “New Ulm is going to be a good match, and St. James will be a fun one to have for our Meet the Tigers game.”