June 5, 2017 at 1:30 p.m.
Foiled at the finish
Pulaski's last-minute goal knocks Hodags out of WIAA tournament
Foiled at the finish
Brooke Schauer scored with 42 seconds remaining in regulation as the second-seeded Red Raiders knocked off Rhinelander 3-2 at Pulaski Middle School.
The loss ended Rhinelander's run of four straight regional titles and marked the second year in a row the Hodags' season was ended by Pulaski.
The game was a far cry from the 5-1 result in favor of Pulaski back on April 8, but Rhinelander's best effort was not enough to advance.
"Our girls played with a lot of heart today," Rhinelander coach Dan Millot said. "We played banged up, injured. I think the heat became a factor in some of our injuries but, you know, in the end, it comes down to the whole body of work and I thought we had our chances. We had our opportunities. We weren't as clean as we could have been in our attacking third of the field."
Maggie Hernandez scored twice for Pulaski and set up the game-winner in the 90th minute, fielding the ball just outside the Hodags' 18-yard box. Drawing a crowd of defenders, Hernandez tapped a pass to an open Schauer, who dribbled twice and rifled a shot that Hodag keeper Abby Oettinger deflected, but could not steer wide of the goal.
"It was a nice shot. It was a well-placed shot. Abby got her hands on it. You know, just not quite enough and those things happen," Millot said. "Give (Schauer) credit. She finished when she needed to finish. We should have denied it. We didn't deny it but, again, it doesn't come down to that one instant of the game. It's 90 minutes."
The Hodags were seconds away from forcing overtime after trailing much of the second half. Brooke Mork tapped home a loose ball after a Sydney Zettler shot into the box deflected off a Pulaski defender seconds into the 81st minute.
Mork was pushed into the attack late after struggling at times defensively. Hernandez's goals in the 26th and 51st minutes came after she got around Mork, represented Rhinelander's last line of defense.
"That's unfortunate but we didn't cover for her either and we need to do that as well," Millot said. "It is what it is. It doesn't come down to one player. It comes down to everybody, coaching as well."
Alayna Franson scored in the 11th minute, putting home a shot from roughly 18 yards out after Lauren Fabich sent a ball through the Pulaski defense.
Offensively, the Hodags generated more pressure than they did in the April 8 loss to the Raiders, or either of last season's two meetings between the sides.
"I think we had the right game plan in order to beat them. We moved the ball well, we just needed to execute a little bit better and didn't," Millot said.
Despite being outshot 28-12 in the match, the Hodags had several nice opportunities. In the 10 minutes before Mork's equalizer, she had two chances on breakaways that were snuffed out late by the Pulaski defense. Early in the second half, Zettler misfired wide left from the top of the 18 and the Hodags missed a rebound opportunity in the 51st minute after a direct free kick by Franson was misplayed by Pulaski keeper Malorie Schultz.
Oettinger made seven saves in the loss for Rhinelander.
"Defensively, Pulaski comes at you with a lot of weapons and I thought, defensively, we played a hell of a game," Millot said. "We gave them a battle. They game off the pitch knowing they just had a battle."
That didn't make the postgame huddle any easier as the Hodags bid farewell to a senior class that included Zettler, Oettinger, Fabich, Sabani and five others.
"It's like I told the girls afterward, it's not about our wins and our losses," Millot said. "As a team, this is a true team and we share everything from one person to the next - the wins, the defeats. They're a close team and I think that what hurts more than anything. A lot of friendships are developed on this team and some of your friends don't get to play again, at least at this level."
Rhinelander finished the season 20-4. The Hodags lost only once between the April 8 loss to the Red Raiders and Saturday's rematch.
"So now we look to what we need to improve on for next season so we can come back and hopefully move further in the playoffs, but we're going to have some big shoes to fill."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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