PLATTSBURGH — Sometimes a tie can be a good thing.
Charisse Abellard’s direct kick with just 14 seconds left in regulation Saturday gave the Clinton Community College women’s soccer team a 1-all overtime tie with Mohawk Valley Community College at the Field House Soccer Complex.
“They are the No. 3 team in the country and No. 3 in our region,” said Clinton coach Donna Dixon. “They have a very high-powered offense, averaging five goals a game.
“We got more confident the longer we stayed in the game. We came out in the second half and played real well, not giving them a lot of opportunities. They outshot us, but weren’t that dangerous.”
The Hawks, following a scoreless first half, opened the scoring with 20:39 gone in the second stanza on Megan Carlo’s goal.
But Kenna Agoney was taken down later on and the Cougars were awarded a direct kick. Abellard made it count.
“Charisse made a great shot — she has a great leg and sent the ball inside the far post,” said Dixon.
Neither team scored in overtime.
“We had our opportunities in the overtimes,” said Dixon. “But, for us to get a tie was a huge victory for us considering how good they are. It was a gutsy, gutsy performance. The girls went out and did what they needed to do. I’m very proud of them.”
Mohawk Valley finished with a 25-17 shot advantage. Emily Schultz made 21 saves in net for the Cougars and Vanessa Jecko 12 stops for the Hawks.
“Emily came out and played her best game of the year,” said Dixon. “She intercepted a lot of balls.
“Collectively, it was one of our best games and there was no quit in these girls. They knew we had to tie or win one of our last two regional games and they fought to the end as you can tell.”
The tie put the Cougars (6-4-2) into the regional tournament. Clinton still has four games to play and how it fares will determine what kind of seed it gets.
Mohawk Valley is now 11-1-1 on the season.
—
Mohawk Valley 1, Clinton 1, OT
Mohawk Valley 0 1 0 0 — 1
Clinton 0 1 0 0 — 1
Second half-
1, MVCC, Carlo (Getman), 20:39. 2, CCC, Abellard dk, 44:46.
Shots:
Mohawk Valley 25, Clinton 17.
Saves:
Jecko, MVCC, 12. Schultz, CCC, 21.
Clinton 1
Mohawk Valley 0
PLATTSBURGH — Akash Tarar’s game-winner at 24:45 of the first half helped the Clinton Community College men’s soccer team to its sixth straight win in a 1-0 defeat of Mohawk Valley Community College Saturday.
Tarrar’s lone marker on the afternoon had Jordan Knight credited with the assist.
“We changed our philosophy and switched to the flat back four (formation,” said head coach Zach Eppler. “Our players made a smooth transition and we were opportunistic in the first half. It proved to be the difference-maker early on.”
Keeper Travis Agoney fended off 10 shots in the shutout performance. Eppler said he played an integral role in the team’s victory.
“(Agoney) did a great job adjusting to wet weather conditions,” Eppler said. “They certainly put on the pressure in the second half and he remained composed.”
In a game where Mohawk Valley led in the shots on goal department 10-7, Eppler said Jamie Davison and Jordan Knight played exceptional up front.
“They won a lot of 50-50 battles and owned a significant amount of possession time,” Eppler said. “They were opportunistic.”
The Cougars will venture to Adirondack Community College in a pivotal region game on Wednesday at 4 o’clock.
—
Clinton 1, Mohawk Valley 0
Mohawk Valley 0 0 — 0
Clinton 1 0 — 1
First half-
1, CCC, Tarar (Knight), 24:45.
Shots:
Mohawk Valley 10. Clinton 7.
Saves:
Agoney, CCC, 10. Squires, MVCC, 6.
