KoMets rally to earn draw vs. P-E-M

A two-goal lead is considered one of the most dangerous leads in hockey, and while Kasson-Mantorville wasn’t playing hockey, the boys’ soccer team did come back from a two-goal deficit to finish Saturday’s road game against Plainview-Elgin-Millville with a 3-3 draw.  

The KoMets started things off early with a goal from David Perdomo within the first five minutes of the game. PEM answered back with a trio of goals to end the first half up 3-1.  

It was a tale of two halves for the KoMets, as they outscored the Bulldogs 2-0 in the second half thanks to goals from Jacob Goodman and another from David Perdomo. 

So how was Kasson-Mantorville able to mount such a big comeback?

Head Coach Shawn Bromelkamp said the KoMets made a few alignment changes to our defense at halftime and defensive players began to focus more on setting up quality offensive possessions early. 

“Our defenders were able to use their speed and positioning to stop PEM ball-handlers and distribute it to our forwards and midfielders using lead passes and passes into open space,” he said. “Having defenders set up these kinds of quality possessions not only led to scoring opportunities for us, but also allowed us to have more control of the game than the first half.”

Another difference Bromelkamp noticed in the second half was that the KoMets brought much more energy and intensity during the second half, and were able to possess the ball a majority of the time.

He hopes their success against P-E-M will give his team, especially the younger players, more confidence about their abilities.

“There are a lot of new, young players on the varsity roster, which might have led to uncertainty among the team as far as what we might be capable of this year,” he said. “When we have mini-successes during the game such as our defense recovering from an opponent's fast break, or putting multiple shots on goal in a short period of time, we begin to believe that we can really control the tempo of a game if we put our minds to it.”

Bromelkamp said this game should serve as another source of motivation. “This hopefully will further give confidence to the team, as well as leaving them hungry for a win in our next game.” 

The KoMets next home game is slated for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, September 3, against Rochester Lourdes.