By
Tim Heiduk
September 21, 2019
(LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga.) The #22 Westmont women's soccer team battled back from a goal down at halftime to earn a 1-1 draw against #15 Mobile (Ala.) in the Georgia Gwinnett Grizzly Classic. It was the Warriors' second and final game of the tournament after upsetting #1 William Carey (Miss.) on Thursday.
"I think that our legs were fatigued from the first game and all the pressing we did. We just weren't sharp today," said Westmont head coach
Jenny Jaggard. "We ended up really having to earn that tie. I'm proud of them for pulling through and getting it, but it was challenging."
The Warriors found themselves trailing in the 15th minute of play when Mobile converted a penalty kick after a Westmont handball, the third penalty kick goal the Warriors have conceded this season. The Rams almost added to their lead in the 30th minute when they hit the crossbar, only for the ball to bounce into the arms of junior goalkeeper
Gabi Haw.
"Getting scored on is what woke us up," said Jaggard. "It's frustrating when you need that to motivate you to get going."
Westmont came to life towards the end of the first half, when freshman forward
Grace Duckens served in a couple of dangerous crosses from the left flank, but was unable to connect with any of her teammates. Senior defender
Kira Nemeth perhaps had the team's best chance of the half, as she surged centrally from her left back position and shimmied past one defender before shooting just wide of the far post.
The Warriors continued their momentum in the second half, as junior forward
Bri Johnson found Duckens over the top, but the freshman's shot went wide. Senior forward
Maddi Berthoud forced a couple of saves out of Mobile goalkeeper Antonia Bauer, as the Rams were able to weather the storm that was Westmont's attack.
"As the second half developed, we really played ourselves into that game," said Jaggard. "We started moving the ball better in the middle third and finding moments to go forward. We just weren't sharp on the finishing today. We created a lot of opportunities and had 20 shots, but they were not well placed. It was either right at the keeper or blown over the top of the goal.
"It's unfortunate when you have something right in the box and it's just you and the keeper, then you blow it over the top. We've got to get better at those key moments when it's just tap it in and finish."
Sophomore midfielder
Isabelle Berthoud took advantage of a key moment in the 83rd minute with her second goal of the tournament and fifth of the season, tied for most on the team with her older sister Maddi. A through ball from sophomore midfielder
Teagan Matye was intercepted by an onrushing Bauer, but only as far as the younger Berthoud, who deservedly got the Warriors on the scoreboard from just outside the box.
"She knows where to be at the right place," said Jaggard. "Her timing has just been incredible. She's done it multiple times this season, it's not just been in this tournament. She finds ways to be in the right spot when balls bounce out in the box; she's just right there. She's a very composed finisher."
A scoreless final seven minutes of the second half sent the game to overtime. Westmont outshot Mobile 4-1 in extra time, but neither side was able to break the deadlock and the two teams settled for a draw.
"The energy that we put into double overtime, if we would have just put that energy into the first 20 minutes, then maybe the game would have been different," said Jaggard. "We ended up expending more energy than we'd planned on. It would have been nice if we would've done it early and made our lives easier.
"Overall I'm happy that we were able to get that tie. Like I told the team, it's a big deal they finally stepped up and found a way. Good teams find a way to change their situation. While we weren't able to get the win, we were able to get a tie, which is much better than a loss in this situation."
The Warriors, who will surely move up in the NAIA Coaches' Poll to be released on Wednesday, finish the nonconference portion of their schedule with a 6-1-1 record. The team begins Golden State Athletic Conference play with a trip to northern California, where Westmont will play William Jessup on Oct. 3 and Menlo on Oct. 5.
