Glendale's Kristin Knetzer broke a scoreless tie early in the second half and then scored an insurance goal in the final minute to help the Falcons down Lebanon 3-1 Monday night.
After several missed opportunities in the first half, the senior captain took an assist from Teaira Clancy and punched a ball into the right corner of the net for a 1-0 Glendale lead.
"I saw Teaira, and she's really fast on the outside," Knetzer said. "So I played to the corner, and then I made a through-run, and she played it right back to me. I took a touch on the inside, shot it and it barely missed the goalie's hands at the top corner."
Ten minutes later, Clancy got behind Lebanon's defense once more and found Emma Miller at the right corner of the penalty box. The freshman forward absolutely blasted a shot past Lady Jackets keeper Abbey Schmidt for a 2-0 lead.
Glendale coach Jeff Rogers discussed the benefits of his team learning to play to its strengths this season. A characteristic necessary to deal with Lebanon's crafty back line of junior Mariah Mitchell and Evangel signee Becca Tucker.
"[Clancy] is definitely one of the fastest kids I've ever coached, and we're starting to find her, which is a positive for us," Rogers said. "I thought their player on the back line, I think her name was Mariah … she did a heck of a job back there. We talked about making her commit and then playing the ball in behind her. I think a good example of that was Emma Miller's goal, where she takes a ball their sweeper was cleaning up in the first half, and we were finally able to take advantage of that."
Facing a 2-0 deficit late in the game, many teams would fold.
Not Lebanon.
The Lady Jackets pressed forward, and for a solid five-minute stretch, placed Glendale keeper Emma Brand under a considerable amount of duress.
With just under 13 minutes left in the game, Lebanon finally was able to capitalize.
A beautiful diving save by Brand knocked a would-be goal off the left post; however, the ball deflected back to the Lady Jackets. Midfielder Emily Wilson corralled the ball and then quickly found a wide-open Lexi Wapelhorst. The junior forward then found the back right corner of the net for Lebanon's lone goal.
Despite the loss, Jackets head coach Matt Jernigan was pleased with his team's resilient nature.
"Soccer's definitely a momentum game," Jernigan said. "We got the momentum late in the game, and I think the girls kind of felt that. We knew that it was our time to push. Lexi did a great job up top, controlling the ball and really giving us time to get up and pressure. It's all about the effort, and our effort was there the second half."
A late call in the box with 19 seconds left in the game allowed Knetzer to capitalize on a penalty kick for her brace and a 3-1 final score.
"I tend to go to the same side," Knetzer said. "I tried to go for the corner and, actually, hit side net, so I was pretty happy about that. It was kind of nerve-wracking, though. I kind of thought I was going to miss, but I didn't."
While Glendale might not have the experience and firepower of past seasons, the difficult schedule remains. As his team continues to find its own identity, Rogers remains upbeat.
"Every win our kids can find this year is a good win for us because of our inexperience. They're getting better and better, and they're competing well, and tonight was a good example."
Glendale (4-8) travels across town to play Parkview on Tuesday, while Lebanon (6-9) hosts Crocker on Thursday.
Glendale – 3, Lebanon – 1
Scoring – Second Half
Glendale – Kristin Knetzer assisted by Teaira Clancy
Glendale – Emma Miller assisted by Teaira Clancy
Lebanon – Lexi Wapelhorst assisted by Emily Wilson
Glendale – Kristen Knetzer penalty kick
