Mahtomedi goalkeeper Katelyn Bradley made a save in the second half against Holy Angels in the Class 1A semifinals Tuesday at U.S. Bank Stadium. Photo: ELIZABETH FLORES • liz.flores@startribune.com
Both of the first two girls’ soccer state tournament games Tuesday went past the 100-minute mark, delaying game three and leaving Mahtomedi players sapped by hunger.
So the No. 1 seed Zephyrs took a bite out of Holy Angels. They scored early, led by two goals at halftime and forced the defensive-minded Stars to play catch up.
No. 4 Holy Angels cut its deficit but defending Class 1A champion Mahtomedi prevailed 2-1.
A 15-yard blast from Lauren Heinsch in the third minute “got us excited and ready to play the rest of the half,” said Sonia Meyer, who assisted on the goal.
Photo gallery: Class 1A semifinals
“That was huge, at least for me, emotionally,” Mahtomedi (14-5-1) coach Dave Wald said. “And I think we took it at them for about the next 30 minutes.”
Holy Angels coach David Marshak estimated his team’s slow start at 20 to 25 minutes but who’s counting. What mattered most is that Heinsch scored again in the 27th minute to put the Stars (17-3-1) in a bind.
“We’re not really built to be a come-from-behind team,” Marshak said. “All season long we’ve prided ourselves on being tough to score on.”
Mahtomedi’s pace held sway. The defending champions finished with 17 shots, well above anything Stars’ goalkeeper Greta Forseth saw all season.
Teammate Gia Aleman scored a goal on a free kick but it wasn’t enough.
First report
Mahtomedi junior forward Lauren Hensch scored 2½ minutes into the game Tuesday against Holy Angels, then scored again before halftime to lead the Zephyrs to a Class 1A semifinal victory at U.S. Bank Stadium.
With the 2-1 victory, the No. 1 seed and defending state champ advances to play in the championship game at 10 a.m. Friday.
Holy Angels narrowed the margin to one goal in the second half on a 33-yard free kick by Gia Aleman.
Check back later for more on the game.
