Baker, Mariner girls notch soccer wins
For a good portion of Wednesday’s District 5A-15 Tournament match, the host Ida Baker Bulldogs and Cape Coral Seahawks fought for every free ball.
Many of the battles occurred in the middle of the soccer field with players going to the ground from the physical toll.
The play intensified even more after halftime, as the teams tried to break a 1-1 tie.
“Cape wasn’t holding anything back,” Baker coach Dave Trepkowski said. “We just tried to step it up and take everything they gave us.”
Baker managed to score the only second-half goal, earning the hard-fought 2-1 win. They advance to Thursday’s district semifinals at Fort Myers.
With about 15 minutes left, freshman Brenna Hambsch scored on an assist from junior Christine Giles.
Hambsch’s shot initially was stopped by Cape goalkeeper Shelby Rowe, but the ball slipped from her grasp and rolled into the net.
The Bulldogs held off the Seahawks over the final 15 minutes, preventing a penalty kick shootout.
The Bulldogs (15-4-3) entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed and with hopes of contending for the title and a regional playoff berth. They got all they could handle from the rival Seahawks (5-8-3).
Both teams also battled the elements on a brisk night.
“It doesn’t matter what happens in the regular season. Everybody is out here to win,” Trepkowski said. “We’re fortunate to play another day.”
The Bulldogs face sixth-seed Fort Myers, a 2-0 winner over Gulf Coast, in the semifinals at 6 p.m. Thursday.
The Bulldogs struck first about 15 minutes into the first half. Freshman Brittney Herrera took a long pass from Giles on the left side of the field and with her left foot, buried a shot into the right side of the net.
The Seahawks evened the score 1-1 with about 17 minutes left in the half. Freshman Jaimee Smith struck a high drive over Baker goalkeeper Libby Schuls from about 30 yards away. Rebeca Costa picked up an assist on the scoring play.
There weren’t many quality scoring chances in the second half. Cape senior Nina Antonacci used her speed several times during the match to get the ball deep into the offensive zone.
Junior Allie Hare, sophomore Samantha Dalzotto and freshman Meghan Turner were among the key players in the backfield defensively.
One of the Seahawks’ best scoring chances came near the 20-minute mark of the second half when Dalzotto got tangled up with Cape’s Carina Powell at the top of the 18-yard box. An infraction was called on Dalzotto, giving the Seahawks a free kick. Emily Daniels blasted a shot that sailed over the goal.
Mariner 1, North Fort Myers 0: The game-winning goal came with about 15 minutes remaining, sending Mariner (13-6-1) on to Thursday’s District 5A-15 semifinal round against top-seeded Barron Collier, an 11-0 winner over East Lee County.
Rebecca Smith was in the right place at the right time when a corner kick was batted around several times in front of the net before Smith tapped it in to seal the win.
Goalkeeper Brianna Abatisti otherwise made nine saves on the night for North (10-11-0).