Hill-Murray's Claire Cater (9) led the game in scoring with two goals. The Pioneers and Blazers ended in a 2-2 tie at Hill-Murray on Tuesday night. Photo by Cheryl Myers, SportsEngine
Visitation's Andi Barth (center) breaks free of her defender and heads to the net. Barth scored a goal in the second half of Tuesday's game against the Pioneers. Photo by Cheryl Myers, SportsEngine
Settling for a tie can be tough to come to terms with. Sometimes it feels like a loss, sometimes it feels like a win, and sometimes it can be hard to draw conclusions from the result.
The 2-2 finish after a scoreless overtime between host Hill-Murray (1-1-1) and Visitation (2-0-1) at Mary, Queen of Victory Stadium in Maplewood Tuesday night saw both coaches come to different conclusions about the result of the game and whether or not it was deserved.
“I think we should have won the game, to be honest with you, because we had more chances than they actually did,” said Hill-Murray coach Simbo N’diaye. “We moved the ball better than they did but they had the two forwards on top that were very dangerous.”
The Pioneers were in control for most of the game, owning time of possession and they outshot the Blazers 24 to nine, with three more shots on net than their opponent.
While the result may have been frustrating, N’diaye said he was happy with the performance and for how hard his girls worked. He was especially pleased with the way his midfielders pressed and joined their forwards in the attack, becoming too much to handle for Visitation’s defense.
“Our midfielders going forward is our strength, so we kind of move the ball and they interchange among themselves very fluidly, and that’s what makes us dangerous,” N’diaye said.
Photo Gallery: Visitation girls vs. Hill-Murray girls
That build-up play was what led to a pair of goals from Hill-Murray’s Claire Cater, who got herself into the perfect attacking position twice with the defense having to mark multiple attackers. Once she got quality service from her teammates, she was able to find the back of the net.
Visitation coach Jay Miller seemed more pleased than N’diaye after the game, as Miller’s team was able to come back from a one-goal deficit twice and earn the draw.
“We had to make adjustments that we have not had to make in the previous games this season. Being forced to make those adjustments on the fly caused us much consternation, but credit to our girls, they battled back twice and I would say it’s a fair result,” he said.
The Blazers, ranked No. 6 in the Class 1A coaches’ poll, scored both of their goals in the second half off of counter attacks, with their midfield playing long balls to either Andi Barth or Katherine Jones and letting them wreak havoc on the No. 2-1A Pioneers’ defense once they won possession. The counter-attacking style is not something Miller wants to do all the time this season, but he feels it was the right adjustment to make against a tough team away from home.
“We would prefer to be able to dictate the game, but with all things considered, being at their place, playing on turf, we play on a grass field, knowing that they have the caliber players that they have, we knew from probably about the eighth minute that that’s the way we needed to play,” he said.
He described Barth and Jones as players that can “change the game on a dime”, but he was very complimentary of the service they received throughout the game.
“It’s not just them, but our players that understand where they’re going to be and can hit that service,” he said. “The forwards can dictate play, and having the supporting cast around them to be able to get them the ball has been huge for us.”
Goalkeeper Kate Norman makes a diving save in the second half to keep Visitation within a goal of Hill-Murray. The No.6-1A Blazers and the No.2-1A Pioneers finished overtime tied at two goals apiece. Photo by Cheryl Myers, SportsEngine
First Report
Hill-Murray and Visitation had to settle for a 2-2 draw after 90 minutes of play on a chilly Tuesday night at Mary, Queen of Victory Stadium in Maplewood.
The Pioneers, ranked No. 2 in the Class 1A coaches’ poll, opened the scoring first, as Claire Cater found the end of a centering pass from Katherine Schindler and lofted it into the left corner of the net. Schindler did the heavy lifting, getting past multiple defenders while she worked along the goal line to create enough space to play a ball in.
The No. 6-1A Blazers tied it 1-1 seven minutes into the second half with Andi Barth converting on a one-on-one chance with the keeper. The goal was set up with a flicked header from Katherine Jones, which sent Barth through on goal.
The Pioneers (1-1-1) retook the lead seven minutes later with Cater’s second goal of the contest, as she headed home a pin-point cross from the left wing by Lucy Zupfer.
The Blazers (2-0-1) came back from a one-goal deficit for a second time with under 10 minutes left when Jones scored via a counter attack, finishing after she rounded the keeper and set up an open net.
Both teams had a chance or two in overtime to score a winner, but neither team could find the back of the net.
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