The battle for the top spot in District 9-5A was a one-sided affair Friday at the Loos Athletic Complex in Addison.

Coming into the game, Lake Highlands and W.T. White were tied with district records of 9-2.

The 'Cats dropped their first meeting against White at home, in a disappointing 3-1 loss, so Friday night they had revenge on their minds.

Joel Mendoza, a sophomore midfielder and leading scorer for the 'Cats with eight goals on the season, put in the first goal for Lake Highlands with just over 34 minutes left in the first half.

In what seemed to be a flashback to the first match-up between the district's top two teams, the 'Cats were unable to capitalize on a number of scoring opportunities in the first half. However, they used a stingy defense, led by sophomore captain Mason Miller, to shut down a potent Longhorn attack.

It wasn't until 16:35 mark in the second half that the 'Cats were able to find the back of the net again. The second LH goal of the game came on a perfect cross field pass from junior Jonathan Esselin to a streaking Isaac Garcia. Garcia received the pass and one-touched it past a baffled W.T. White goalie.

The 'Horns failed to score on a few different occasions, including a 35-yard laser that sailed off the crossbar. Some frustration was shown by Longhorn players late in the second, who began playing chippy.

The 'Cats kept their cool and scored their third and final goal of the game when junior Jonathan Esselin, on a pass from Mendoza, put the game out of reach with just under 10 minutes left to play.

The 3-0 victory was a much-needed win for the 'Cats, who are now in sole possession of first place in the district with an overall record of 14-4-1 (10-2 district).

Lake Highlands looks to stay atop District 9-5A with their final games of the season. The 'Cats play Carrollton Creekview at home tomorrow night, then face Molina in the final game of district play this Friday.

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On the girls side, for the second time this season, sophomore Brinkley Field scored four goals in a game and led the Lady 'Cats to a dominating 6-1 win over W.T. White.

The win puts the Lady 'Cats on a six game win streak, scoring an amazing 14 goals in their last two games alone.

With a district record of 10-2, the Lady 'Cats are just one game out of first place, which makes tomorrow's game against the district's top team, Carrollton Creekview (11-1), the most important one of the season.

The last loss of the season for Coach Benson's squad came at the hands of Creekview. Now payback is in order.

The action gets started at 7:00 p.m. tomorrow at Standridge Stadium in Carrollton.

GO 'CATS!