DRAMA QUEENS: Mustangs score 2 in final minutes to edge Skyline
Summer Larson prepares to send a cross to a teammate against Skyline’s Julia Moe.
For close to 75 minutes Tuesday night, Northville’s girls soccer team mounted attack after attack against Ann Arbor Skyline keeper Kennedy Wassef, who turned back numerous Mustang scoring chances with dazzling saves.
Wassef’s heroics were almost solely responsible for the Eagles’ 1-0 advantage heading into the 73rd minutes of the bone-chilling season opener for both teams.
But like a movie with a surprising last-minute plot twist, the Mustangs scored two goals in the final seven minutes to earn a 2-1 victory.
First goal of season
Prior to Northville’s riveting rally, the game’s lone goal was scored by Katherine Yuan, who scored after a teammate deked a Mustang defender and slid her a perfect pass in front of the net.
(To check out a couple promising Northville scoring chances, click here.)
Wassef was wonderful for the majority of the game, turning away point-blank shots and hugging blazing net-seekers launched by Northville’s talented corp of forwards.
But the Mustangs finally broke through in the waning minutes when Lauren Yaquinto hammered the ball into the back of the net to secure a short-lived 1-1 deadlock.
Summer breaks 1-1 deadlock
Moments later, Summer Larson won the match for the hosts with a goal at the 5:20 mark of the second half.
While Northville sophomore keeper Cam Topper didn’t have to face nearly as many on-target shots as Wassef, she was brilliant in her own way, stonewalling a couple of prime Skyline opportunities.
Juliana Bohlen didn’t score for Northville, but her non-stop effort resulted in two second-half chances that Wassef steered out of harm’s way.
Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@sociallhousenews.com.
