WILMINGTON — Lily Phillips took a bouncing through ball in on net, made a move to get around the goalkeeper and sent a shot in to lift Saint Mark’s girls soccer to an overtime victory against Padua on March 20 at Abessinio Stadium.
The goal came in the 85th minute, ending a contest that included battles against the wind, cold and early season hiccups.
Neither team could score in the first half, with Pandas goalkeeper Elle Semmel and Spartans backstop Marissa Cirillo and their defenses playing a part. The Spartans also were called for several offsides violations as they tried to spring their primary scoring weapons, Phillips and Emma Manley, with long through balls.
The best opportunity of the first half belonged to Saint Mark’s in the 30th minute. Phillips intercepted a Pandas pass and headed toward Semmel, with Manley to her left. A Padua defender managed to stop a Spartans shot. The ball bounced around for a few seconds before a Spartan sent it off the side of the net.
The Pandas struck first in the second half. Devin Funchion caught up to a long ball down the right side near the end line, and from a sharp angle was able to sneak one inside the far post for the 1-0 lead.
They kept the pressure on but could not add to their lead. The Spartans tied things up in the 50th, with Manley breaking free to Semmel’s right and shooting low to the far post. The remainder of regulation featured lots of up-and-back action but few scoring chances. Cirillo had the toughest save, stopping a Pandas attempt from about 10 yards out in the 73rd minute. Padua could not take advantage of two corner kicks in the final minute before the whistle blew.
Semmel made one save in overtime, but Phillips made sure the next opportunity resulted in the game-winner.
Final statistics were not available early Thursday morning. Saint Mark’s (1-0) travels to Smyrna on Saturday for a 6 p.m. tilt, while the Pandas (0-2) hit the road against Sanford on March 27 at 3:45 p.m. It is the first of six straight road games for the Pandas.
Photos by Mike Lang.
