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Green’s anticipation leads to game-winning goal for Mounties

KATELYN HIBBARD/Sun-Gazette Loyalsock’s Sarah Van Fleet, left, battles with South Williamsport’s Olivia Casella during a game Monday evening at South Williamsport Community Park. The Mounties won in overtime, 1-0.

Throughout Monday’s game, South Williamsport had been sending its corner kicks to the near post. It was a fact not lost on Mounties goalkeeper Alyssa Johnson and she passed the information on to temmate Bella Green.

So when the Mounties set up for an overtime corner against Loyalsock, Green found a spot just outside the 6-yard box close to that near post. Lexi Yerger perfectly delivered the ball toward the post and Green sent a header into the net.

The goal gave the Mounties a thrilling 1-0 win over Loyalsock with only 2 minutes, 3 seconds left in overtime of a physical game.

“I knew I had to get it done, not only for my coaches, but for my teammates,” Green said. “I really owed it to them to work my hardest and get the ball in the back of the net.”

“We practice set pieces pretty much every practice. We’re really happy,” South Williamsport coach Dan Solley said. “The girls have scored on several occasions this season off of set pieces, so Bella took that near post.”

Both teams had opportunities in regulation to put in a go-ahead goal. Heading into overtime Loyalsock held a 9-4 advantage in shots on goal and an 11-10 overall advantage in shots.

It looked as if Loyalsock was going to take a 1-0 lead in the first minute of the second half and shift momentum when Rhandie Jessell fed a great ball to Charlotte Neylon. From 15 yards out, Neylon tried to slip a shot into the upper-left 90, but the ball hit the crossbar.

“That’s the way the game goes. You get weird bounces and sometimes they don’t go in and sometimes they do,” Loyalsock coach Ben Comfort said. “Unfortunately that didn’t. I think if we get that goal, that’s enough to win it for us because obviously we’re going to change our plan of attack then, but we didn’t get the goal. South did, and they were able to win the game.”

Both teams possessed throughout the game and didn’t allow either team to get great, open looks on goal. Instead, both teams constantly swarmed the ball and forced tough shots.

The Lancers fired 10 shots at South’s goal and each time Johnson came up with a huge stop or block to prevent a go-ahead goal.

“Alyssa is just solid, that’s all there is to it,” Solley said. “When she’s back there you have a heightened sense of security, so we’re really happy. She’s had three shutouts in a row, so we’re happy with where we’re at.”

“I wouldn’t want anybody else back there but her,” Green said. “She’s amazing.”

South Williamsport had two excellent opportunities in the final 5 minutes of the game to take a lead.

Haley Neidig got a ball fed to her around the 18 and fired a low, hard shot. Loyalsock goalie Mari Houseknecht came up with a key block. Three minutes later, Houseknecht again had a nice save when Elizabeth Manning fired a shot from 25 yards out. Yerger had a chance halfway through the second half by taking the ball inside of the 18, but a Loyalsock defender managed to block her from firing a shot as Houseknecht slid to grab the ball.

“Both teams created some chances. Obviously we weren’t able to put one in the back of the net, but I don’t fault the girls for that,” Comfort said. “They played well, and played well enough to win, it just didn’t happen today.”

Neylon was one player that South’s defense wanted to limit, and South Williamsport’s Megan Weber did an excellent job guarding Neylon, even more impressive given Weber defended the speedy Lancer with a slight hamstring injury and only yielded three shots on goal from Neylon.

“I’ll tell you what, Megan Weber was working with a bad hamstring and she defended Charlotte all day long. One of fastest players in area,” Solley said. “She did a great job. She’s a smart, heads up player. It was fun to watch her play.”

South Williamsport 1, Loyalsock 0

SW–Bella Green (Lexie Yerger), 2:03.

Shots: L 10, SW 6. Corners: L 2, SW 9. Saves: L (Mari Houseknecht) 5, SW (Alyssa Johnson) 10.

Records: Loyalsock (6-2-1), South Williamsport (7-0).

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