EDWARDSVILLE – Soccer can be a funny game at times. Just when a team is in control of a match, things can suddenly turn in a heartbeat.
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Edwardsville's girls team experienced that in their match against Marquette Catholic Wednesday evening at Tiger Stadium. The Tigers seemingly were in control of the match, getting several chances at goal after Abby Crabtree had put Edwardsville ahead on a goal in the 42nd minute.
All of a sudden, the Tigers found themselves even with the Explorers thanks to a blast from Annabelle Copeland that found the back of the net in the final minutes of the match. Undaunted, EHS battled and got a goal from Allysiah Belt in the dying moments to allow the Tigers to emerge with a 2-1 non-conference win.
Edwardsville had the majority of time of possession most of the way, especially in the second half. “We possessed the ball really, really well,” Tiger coach Abby Comerford said. “We were playing our game and that's what we wanted to play; we had the ball on the ground. We were moving the ball really, really well.
“Marquette had a few chances there in the beginning; the girls played really well. This just shows how important it is to put the ball in the back of the net.”
“Playing a team like that, they're just phenomenal at every position,” Explorer coach Steve Mitchell said of the Tigers. “They're fast, they have great touch on the ball...the first 40 minutes, I thought, we played an excellent game, we had some chances. We have a couple of starters out, but no excuses; they're (Edwardsville) the real deal.”
Comerford reminded the Tigers how quickly a match can turn, even though the teams were level at 0-0 at the break. “We told them that, 'girls, one little loop, we're tied',” Comerford said. “It's one of those things that we needed to put a second one in.”
Edwardsville broke on top in the 42nd minute when Sarah Krause found Abby Crabtree with a feed, and all Crabtree had to do was put it away behind Explorer goalkeeper Lauren Fischer to put EHS up 1-0.
“Second half, we came out flat,” Mitchell said. “We battled, battled, battled.”
The Tigers did have several good opportunities in that second half, owning the ball most of the way, but they just failed to click. The Explorers waited for an opportunity of their own and it seemingly came just past the 70th minute when they nearly scored. Marquette seemed to gain momentum after that near-miss and, off a quick throw-in, got the ball to Annabelle Copeland, who fired a drive that Edwardsville goalkeeper Regan Windau couldn't stop to draw the Explorers even at 1-1 in the 74th minutes.
“That was a laser (Copeland) had from 25 yards out; there's not many keepers stopping that one,” Mitchell said.
The Tigers threw themselves into attack immediately from there and it paid in the 79th minute when Belt took a pass, quickly set up and fired a shot that went into the back of the net for what proved to be the winning goal.
“That was a great touch” by Belt, Comerford said. “We had been talking to her of being in the back but getting up and playing offense as well. It was one of those things where she was definitely playing offense.”
Edwardsville went to 7-2-1 on the year with the win; the Explorers fell to 4-5-1 on the year. Edwardsville hosts Normal Community in a Saturday afternoon match at Tiger Stadium, while the Explorers host Roxana Thursday evening and Quincy Notre Dame Friday evening, both matches at Gordon Moore Park.
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