By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

Riverside split its first two matches of the season last week, coming away with a 2-1 win at Lusher on Saturday and a 5-2 loss to Belle Chasse at Riverside on Wednesday.

Heidi Garcich scored the Rebels’ two goals in each match.

Riverside coach Stephen Millet said that defense keyed the win over Lusher, though he believes the team can improve in the coming weeks.

“It was a sloppy game,” he said. “But we played well enough on defense to pull it out. But we can play a lot better than we did there.”

Meanwhile, Millet said that the loss last Wednesday to Belle Chasse should help his team in the long run.

“It was an intense game,” Millet said. “I’m glad that the girls got to be in that kind of a game right now.”

Millet says that his Rebels had chances to close the gap.

“We had plenty of opportunities to score,” he said. “Belle Chasse finished theirs. Right now, it’s obvious that they’re more skilled. But we were able to play with them.”

Riverside will return to competition on Friday, where it will host Amite at 1 p.m.