Neither rain nor shine nor torrential downpour was going to deter the Marshalltown girls’ soccer team on Senior Night.

The Bobcats fell behind 2-0 for the second time in three nights, but Marshalltown rallied yet again to force a 2-2 tie in Thursday’s non-conference clash against Colfax-Mingo at Leonard Cole Field.

A steady dose of rain did its best to dampen Marshalltown’s Senior Night ceremony prior to the match, and Colfax-Mingo took its turn next. The Tigerhawks (6-1-3) scored twice in a span of 2 minutes, 42 seconds in the second half to gain the same 2-0 advantage Mason City had on the Bobcats two nights earlier on the same field.

Only this time, it was a different senior that did all the damage for Marshalltown (6-3-2).

Gissel Hernandez Ibarra scored back-to-back goals for the Bobcats in a span of 1:09 for her second career two-goal game, lifting MHS to its second consecutive tie.

“We’re definitely so proud of that,” Hernandez Ibarra. “We’re glad that we were able to come back, even though we were down 2-0 in the beginning.”

On Tuesday night, MHS senior McKenna Coleman scored her team-leading eighth and ninth goals of the season to bring the Bobcats back to even for a 2-2 draw with Mason City. Another slow start set the tone for the deficit they had to face on Thursday night.

“Again we continue to find ways to fight back, but we’ve got to start that way and lead from the front instead of having to recover all the time,” said MHS head coach Stacy Galema. “That’s just the mindset they have. Hopefully it pays off sometime we aren’t down two, but anytime you play as part of a team you want to be in a group that doesn’t give up and fights for each other and pushes as much as they can.

“The energy definitely picked up after we scored that first goal and especially after we scored the second one — it’s just finding a way to have that throughout.”

Neither team found the back of the net in the first half, with Marshalltown sending five shots on net and Colfax-Mingo getting four on frame. Kenya Gomez Reyes nearly notched the early opener for the Bobcats on a ball into the box by Yuri Ramirez, but she didn’t get enough on her chip shot to get the ball past Tigerhawk goalkeeper Emmalyn Buchman.

Fellow senior Stefani Gutierrez got a good chance to put the Bobcats on top in the 14th minute of the match. Ramirez hit a long shot on goal that Buchman saved, but the slippery ball forced a rebound that Gutierrez nearly kneed through for a goal.

Coleman had a pair of chances as well, but Buchman was up to the challenge on a breakaway in the 31st minute, and Coleman missed the cage on a penalty shot awarded after Colfax-Mingo was whistled for a handball in the box in the 33rd.

The scoreless deadlock disappeared in the blink of an eye in the second half. Ashlyn Finch capitalized on a perfect through-ball from Meadow Lane to score for the Tigerhawks at the 51:21 mark, and Lane got her 25th goal of the season — ranked third in Class 1A — to make it 2-0 at 53:03.

“Our defense wanted to help more on offense, which is something we talk about, but they just can’t do it at the same time,” Galema said. “Obviously [Lane] is pretty good. She does a lot of things for them.”

“The goals they had are unfortunate for sure, but it gives us some things to look at and talk about, which at the end of the day is what we want.”

The rain that had dissipated early in the first half came roaring back with 20 minutes left in the match, and yet Marshalltown seemed unfazed. Lilyia Christen had a goal waved off by an offside call by the head official, and Ramirez was on track for another before a handball call canceled the Bobcats’ advantage.

Undaunted, Marshalltown pressed on and finally broke through. The Bobcats earned a free kick from another handball 16 yards off the goal line outside the box to Buchman’s left, and Hernandez Ibarra’s lofting shot hit the bottom of the crossbar and bounced into the net for a goal.

As the deluge strengthened, so did Marshalltown’s resolve — and good fortune. Just more than one minute later, Itzabella Meraz left a drop pass for Hernandez Ibarra that she booted from 40 yards out. The ball skipped its way toward Buchman, who simply misplayed the bounding ball as it squirted off her gloves and into the net for the tying tally.

“We were already down 2-0 and the rain kind of added to the negative atmosphere, but I think it also helped us push through and gave us motivation,” Hernandez Ibarra said. “I was definitely looking for that (first) goal. The second one, I didn’t think that was going to go in. I think it was a lucky goal, but I’ll take any goal.

“I was about to turn around and get ready for the goalie to punt it.”

All square with 15:38 left to play, Marshalltown nearly overtook the Tigerhawks down the stretch. In the 80th and final minute, MHS freshman Claire Bonser sent a long clearing pass out of the defensive zone that Christen flicked on with a back-heel kick, and the bouncing ball led Coleman toward a 1-on-1 opportunity. Her touch was a bit too heavy, and Buchman won the race to the 50/50 ball.

As the final 10 seconds of the match counted down, the Bobcats were unable to convert on one last corner kick, finishing off their second tie in a row.

“I think we all agree it was a slow start and if we started out a little better and more positive it would have been a different game,” Hernandez Ibarra said. “Colfax-Mingo definitely came out more aggressive than we thought they would, but they’re still a great team and we definitely didn’t try to underestimate them.

“I could see our effort on the field until the last buzzer.”

The Bobcats close out Iowa Alliance Conference North Division action tonight with a 7:30 p.m. match at Fort Dodge. A win would give Marshalltown a tie for second place in the division.