Owatonna suffers tough loss

In any sporting event, the game is not over until the clock reads all zeros. Unfortunately, the Owatonna girls soccer team had to be on the receiving end of one of those crushing losses. The Lady Huskies fell to Mankato West 2-0 in their matchup Thursday night at the Owatonna Soccer Complex. 
There’s a lot of little things to take out of a loss like this,” head coach Matt Roddy added. 
 While they may have lost in heartbreaking fashion, it’s not to say that it was a competitive match. The attack from both teams was on display early and often in the first half of play. A combination of smooth clean passes and tight defense allowed for every fan in attendance to be on the edge of their seats. Roddy also added that each team had their share of momentum. 
“It was a streaky type of game. There were times we controlled and dominated and times that they (Mankato West) did the same,” he added. 
There were moments in the first half for Owatonna where it appeared they were close to opening the game up. Fifteen minutes into the first half, junior Sophie Admunson attempted a shot on goal but it drifted just wide of the Scarlets net. Shortly thereafter, sophomore Kiley Friedrichs appeared to have a goal until the Mankato West ‘keeper made a spectacular diving save. 
The Scarlet offense couldn’t muster much offense in the first half in large part due to the play of junior captain Margo Achterkirch. 
“She’s just a strong defender in all aspects of it. If she is in a one-on-one, we feel confident she’s not gonna get beat. She had a really nice game,” Roddy added. 
Both teams would enter the half with a 0-0 tie. Owatonna managed to muster three shots on goal while Mankato West had two. Whether it was on the field or in the stat sheet, both teams would neck and neck the entire first half. However, the ball started to roll the way of Mankato West in the second half. 
Just ten minutes into the second half, the Scarlets managed to register three shots on goal. Both however, were shut down by Britta Gantert. 
“She did a really nice job of coming out and winning the ball at the top of the box. I thought that was one of the strongest things she did today,” Roddy added. 
Keeping the theme of the match, Owatonna answered with two shots on goal attempts of their own roughly ten minutes after West had their chances. One attempt by Josie Sullivan sailed just wide while Toria Koch had her attempt thwarted by another diving stop by the Scarlet ‘keeper. 
With just ten minutes to go in the half, Mankato West junior McKenna Buisman recorded the games’ only two goals in a span of six minutes. 
Owatonna attempted to make one final push in the closing minute until an errant pass sailed out of bounds to help seal the game. Despite the loss, Roddy said that there were certainly some things offensively that they did well. 
“I thought we created some nice stuff out on the wings. Our crossing in off of it was a little inconsistent but if we can tighten that up, I think we are going to get a lot of opportunities,” he said. 
Owatonna will attempt to rebound tonight at Albert Lea.