Hart wins double-overtime thriller over Manistee to advance in Division 3 soccer district

 

MANISTEE — Twice, the Hart girls’ soccer team battled back from a deficit, before finally surging to a thrilling 4-3 double overtime victory Friday afternoon over Manistee.

 

The Division 3 district quarterfinal was played at Mariner Field.

 

In a game of contrasting styles, Manistee playing forward through balls while the Pirates like to dictate possession, the Mariners drew first blood. Alayna Edmondson punched through a slot ball that eluded the defense of Hart keeper Emma Jeffries at the 12-minute mark of the first half.

 

Stepping up their pressure, hoping to force some turnovers up the field to create offensive opportunities, the Pirates were eventually able to even the score 1-all when Hart earned a corner kick.

 

The ball landed at the feet of freshman Olivia Bradley and she fired a blistering shot about 30 yards out that just got over the head of Manistee keeper Piper Eskridge. That goal came with just under eight minutes to play in the opening half.

 

Eskridge managed to prevent the Pirates from scoring again, despite a barrage of shots. She made several outstanding saves to keep the game tied.

 

Hart outshot the Mariners 14-2 in the first half.

 

Manistee took the lead again, 2-1, with less than 10 minutes left in the game when Lindsey Gardner scored off a corner kick that resulted in a scrum in the box.

 

But the Mariners were dealt a major blow when a red card at the five-minute mark disqualified one of their starters for the rest of the match. They were forced to play with 10 players.

 

Hart senior captain Sydney Goodrich found the back of the net on the penalty kick to tie the game for the second time, 2-all four minutes later.

 

Neither team could finish the game before the end of regulation, forcing a 10-minute overtime. The first extra session was scoreless.

 

Manistee took the lead, 3-2, just 25 seconds into the second overtime. The Mariners got the ball just under an onrushing Jeffries and Jayna Edmondson tapped it home.

 

“Second overtime, I was not expecting to concede (a goal) in the first 30-some seconds, because we absolutely dominated the play (but) just couldn’t net anything,” Hart coach Joe Gilbert said. “I was expecting a little more of the same, but when they scored, I was ‘Okay, it’s hurry up offense time,’ which is what we’ve been working on throughout this past week or so, is moving quick.

“Our passing play is phenomenal. I mean, I love how we are working the ball and moving it.”

 

Familiar with playing with a deficit, the Pirates responded to score the next two goals for the win.

 

Lilli Mena, Bri Arjona and Faith VanderVucht combined to set up the Pirates to trigger their press on a turnover, and Arjona sent a shot that hit the bottom of the cross bar and dropped in to make it 3-all.

 

Intercepting a goal kick, Hart midfielder Breslyn Porter drove forward and fired a laser that screamed past Eskridge and the Pirates hung on the rest of the way.

 

“Our girls … their effort, and just the grit to play with as few subs as we had, to keep fighting to win, was awesome,” said Manistee coach Kathy Smith. “I just thought our kids dug hard. It was a tremendous, gritty game. I thought our defense played really well. At the end, we went to a three back trying to push a little bit.”

 

Manistee defeated the Pirates, 3-0, in the district last year.

 

Hart improved to 12-8 on the season with its third straight win and moves on to play Montague in the second game of a district semifinal in Manistee on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

 

The Mariners finished the season 4-11-1.