The girls soccer game between Helias and Battle on Monday night was delayed after gunshots were heard in the area.
With about 15 minutes remaining in the first half, at least three shots were heard coming from the neighborhood just north of the Crusader Athletic Complex. The neighborhood is down a steep hill from the Complex.
"When I heard them, I wasn't sure quite what I was hearing," Helias coach Jay Hebenheimer said. "At first, I thought it might have been fireworks going off."
After the shots rang out, the Helias and Battle players continued to play, just at an understandably bit slower pace.
But Hebenheimer then realized it was gunfire and after a brief talk with the Battle head coach and game officials, it was decided to pull the teams from the field and send them to the locker rooms. That all happened within a minute of hearing the shots.
"We just needed to make sure everybody was safe, first and foremost," Hebenheimer said. "It was the correct and only decision that could be made at that point in time."
Just as the teams were getting to the locker room, two additional shots rang out from the same area as before.
Jefferson City Police Chief Roger Schroeder said Tuesday that the department had no additional information to report about the incident, although officers believe the gunshots were related to some type of family dispute.
The game resumed after a delay of about 15 minutes when the Jefferson City Police Department arrived in the neighborhood.
"It's nothing like I've ever experienced before," Hebenheimer said.
Helias won the game 5-4.