Jacobs rallies to tie Johnsburg
After posting a disappointing 3-13 record last season, Jacobs girls soccer coach Stephanie Schuck wanted to start the 2015 campaign on a positive note.
Mission accomplished.
Scoring 2 goals in the final 11 minutes and 22 seconds, the host Golden Eagles rallied to forge a 2-2 tie with Johnsburg in nonconference action in Algonquin Tuesday afternoon.
It was season opener for both teams.
"Sure we would have liked to have won but I am happy we didn't give up and kept fighting," said Schuck. "We told the girls at halftime we have to finish and we did in the second half. This gives us great momentum going into the next match. We know what we have to work on and we want to keep getting better."
Down 2-0, Cassie Melick got the Golden Eagles on the scoreboard with a goal off a feed from Bailey Adams to make the score 2-1.
With 5:11 remaining, Karissa Gottardo knotted the score at 2-2 with a goal off another assist by Adams.
"Bailey gave me a great pass and I had a good shot on goal," said Gottardo. "We were determined not to give up. We knew we had to finish our shots in the second half."
After last year's tough season, Adams and the Golden Eagles wanted to start the year on a good note.
"We had some shots in the first half we could have scored on," said Adams. "We were determined to have a good start to the season. It was a good first game."
Jacobs goalkeeper Liz Foster was solid in the season opener with 5 saves.
"Liz was fabulous in goal," said Schuck. 'She kept us in the game in the first half."
Johnsburg dented the scoreboard first on an unassisted goal by Taylor Piggott with only 9 minutes and 10 seconds elapsed in the contest.
The Skyhawks grabbed a 2-0 advantage on a tally by Delaney Pruitt with only 24.2 seconds left before intermission.
Johnsburg freshman goalie Megan Jurek, in her first varsity start, registered 3 saves.
"Sometimes a tie feels like a win," said Johnsburg coach Rob Eastland. "This one feels like a loss. If we get that third goal to take a 3-0 lead we win the match. We knew this would be an ugly one. All we could do in the preseason is go 5 on 5 in the gym."