Huntley outlasts Jacobs in PKs

As soon as Huntley’s Delaney Loprieno scored, Abby Nordeen felt confident.

Nordeen wasn’t even sure if she was going to be able to shoot as the Red Raiders fell behind early in a shootout against Jacobs.

Not only did Nordeen get a chance to shoot, but she hit the game-winning goal on a line-drive shot to the right side of the net past Golden Eagles’ goalkeeper Alyssa Koeppler for the 4-3 shootout victory Thursday night in Fox Valley Conference Valley Division soccer action in Huntley.

“It was really intense,” Nordeen said. “I didn’t even know if I was going to shoot. (Loprieno’s goal) energized me. When I got up there, I thought, it can’t be that hard.”

In reality, the Red Raiders (9-4-4, 3-0) needed to fight back in order to earn the division victory.

Jacobs’ senior Lizzie Travis had tied the shootout at 3 with a shot to the right side of the box for the Golden Eagles’ final shot.

Jacobs’ junior Catie Sherman set the tempo for the shootout when she sent a shot rolling on the left side of the goalbox past Huntley goalkeeper Kelli Rubino.

Senior Kelly Manczko then sent the first Huntley shot over the net to the right to put Jacobs in control.

The Golden Eagles led 2-1, until Rubino had back-to-back saves on shots from Danielle Blanchard and Payton Berg. Deanna Hecht and Loprieno each converted shots to give Huntley a 3-2 lead going into the final shooter.

“Huntley is a huge rival and they’ve beat us every year we’ve played them,” said Berg, who is a junior. “It showed us that we can play as a team and we can play with the top-notched teams.”

Jacobs was without two of its starters as midfielder Cassidy Sherman and forward Lauren Grady were both out with injuries. Despite that, and a with a rock-solid defensive effort from sweeper Margaret Rivera the Golden Eagles played Huntley to a 0-0 tie throughout the regulation and two overtimes.

The Red Raiders looked to score off a breakaway as time was closing out in the first overtime, but almost out of nowhere Rivera sprinted over to clear the ball out and preserve the tie.

Rivera also prevented a goal in the second overtime when she used her body to block a shot out of the net off with 2 minutes left. Each team had 5 saves in regulation.

“Both teams had opportunities,” Red Raiders’ coach Kris Grabner said. “Defensively, there were some amazing tackles on both sides of the ball. (Rivera) had a tackle and that’s just the way you’re supposed to play soccer.”