Tomas De La Cruz kept shorthanded McDonald County in the match, but Willard eventually pulled away for a 4-1 soccer victory Monday at Mustang Stadium.
The Mustangs lost a player in the early stages because of a red card, and the Tigers dominated possession, especially during the first half.
"We went down a man early, so that didn't help," McDonald County coach John Delatorre said. "We lost a guy in the midfield, just a bad foul in a bad spot, got a red card. They were able to outnumber us in the middle, and it kind of put us in a bind the rest of the game. They were just able to control the game a little bit better than we were."
Whether jumping or diving, goalkeeper De La Cruz foiled several Willard scoring threats.
"He does a good job of keeping us in games and making some good saves to help us out," Delatorre said.
But it seemed inevitable that the Tigers, hanging around the Mustangs' side of the field like a pesky houseguest who refuses to leave, would break through. They did, at the 24:20 mark of the opening half and again eight minutes later, to lead 2-0 at halftime.
The Mustangs (3-9-1) perked up after the break. Their renewed efforts were rewarded when Kamal Toralba-Smida found the net. The junior used fancy footwork to put the ball past Willard's keeper and pull McDonald County within 2-1 with 29:55 left. Gio Gonzalez delivered the assist.
"It was a good team goal and a good individual goal, so that was good to see," Delatorre said.
The Mustangs suddenly had an extra spring in their step, but they couldn't cash in the rest of the way.
"It gave us some fire for a little bit," Delatorre said of the goal. "Then we made a couple more mistakes, which unfortunately led to a couple more goals. We definitely did have some opportunities to put it at 2-2, but that's the game. It happens."
Six minutes after Toralba-Smida's shot, the Tigers (8-11) scored and regained control. They later added a fourth goal to cap the victory.
"They've got a lot of tough-game experience under their belt and know how to clutch out a win if they need to, which is what they did tonight," Delatorre said of Willard.
Willard won 1-0 in junior varsity action.