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Belton senior Erica Michaud (16), who scored a goal, charges past Round Rock Westwood’s Amber Makhani during the Lady Tigers’ 2-1 Class 5A first-round playoff victory Tuesday. Belton will play Klein Oak in the area round. (Mitch Green/Telegram)

BELTON - Seventy-five minutes into an evenly played soccer match, Belton started pushing the issue. And with 5 minutes of near constant pressure, the Lady Tigers pushed their way into the next round.

Senior Lexy Smith headed home a corner kick with 1:41 remaining, and Round Rock Westwood couldn’t answer as Belton escaped the Class 5A bi-district round with a 2-1 victory Tuesday night at Wilson-Kerzee Field.

The Lady Tigers (24-2) - the District 13-5A champions who got all they could handle from the 14-5A fourth-place Lady Warriors (11-9-5) - advanced to this weekend’s area round to face Klein Oak, which beat Lufkin 4-0.

“This should be an added boost for us,” Smith said. “Now we know we can do anything.”

Belton’s Erica Michaud couldn’t convert on a penalty kick with 7:31 remaining, and teammate Chelsea Jones drilled a shot off the crossbar 3 minutes later as the Lady Tigers increased their offensive pressure.

It paid off when a Westwood defender couldn’t clear Michelle Hagen’s corner kick a couple of yards from the goal line, and Smith headed the ball past goalkeeper Kristen Wright for the game-winner.

“The penalty kick was an opportunity I expected us to score on,” Belton coach Barry Elkins said. “From the sideline, I was thinking that it’s tough to get too many more chances than that in the playoffs. Luckily, that wasn’t the mindset of the girls on the field.”

Westwood controlled the ball for most of the first half but trailed 1-0 at intermission.

Jones sent a long pass over the top that Michaud chased down and one-touched over first-half Lady Warriors keeper Natalie Gardini. Michaud’s shot was one of only three for the Lady Tigers in the first half, compared to six for the Lady Warriors.

Westwood pulled even at the 22:14 mark of the second half when Belton freshman keeper Kelsi Darr charged out but couldn’t corral a long incoming pass, and Katelyn Kessler drilled in for the Lady Warriors.

After the next 15 minutes were played to a stalemate, it was all Belton in the closing minutes.

“Coming out of that district, we knew Westwood would be battle-tested,” Elkins said. “But you could see the change with about 5 minutes left. Our players started pushing hard. They wanted to win it in regulation.”

Added Smith: “We weren’t leaving the field without a win. When I saw the corner kick, I thought, ‘That’s all mine.’”

edrennan@temple-telegram.com