November 7, 2022 at 8:52 a.m.
Ending with a splash
Hodags' wet, wild comeback bid falls short in D3 state semifinals
Ending with a splash
The Hodags outplayed top-seeded Notre Dame following a 51-minute weather delay but did not have enough to overcome an early deficit in a 2-1 loss to the Tritons Friday in the D3 state semifinals at the Uihlein Soccer Complex.
Lightning halted play in the 50th minute with the Hodags trailing 2-0. The electricity passed, but the skies opened during the break and the players returned to a rain-soaked field with numerous puddles of standing water.
"It was honestly a different sport," said Rhinelander senior Braden Mork. "I'm not gonna lie. The ball didn't roll. It had to be in the air and it was just a different sport. I don't know how to describe it."
Mork used the wet conditions to his advantage as he scored Rhinelander's lone goal in the 69th minute. But the Hodags could not use the momentum to find one more score.
"We almost made the greatest comeback we've ever seen on the greatest stage possible," senior defender Charlie Heck said. "It was awesome to see the boys rally like that."
After a foul at the end of the attacking third, Mork sent a free kick to the top of the box that got past everyone and one-hopped inside the right post, giving the Hodags some needed life.
"It's not what I meant to have happen but it worked," he said. "Charlie was supposed to header that one, but they missed and it skipped right in."
Rhinelander had a few other opportunities, but was credited with only one more official shot attempt the remainder of the match. That was a Shane Petrick header that sailed wide in the 77th minute.
Yet Rhinelander (11-3-6) left holding its head held high after not being given much of a chance against the top-seeded Tritons (19-0-4).
"They can all hold their heads up high," Hodag coach Nathan Bates said. "They took the No. 1 seeded team in Division 3 in the state down to the wire. It was a great game."
Ultimately, the Hodags were unable to overcome a slow start and a deficit created by the Tritons' two top scorers.
Senior Emmett Lawton scored his 44th goal of the season to put Notre Dame ahead in the seventh minute. He won a battle with Heck for a cross at the top of the 18 and then dribbled in, unabated, to goalkeeper Cooper Radke. Lawton passed the ball inside the right post to give the Tritons a 1-0 lead.
Junior Ian Noble doubled the advantage in the 20th minute. He received a through ball from Henry McKenna near the top of the 18 and quickly fired a shot through traffic inside the left post.
The Tritons scored on both of their first two shots on goal in the match.
"We knew they were a crossing team and we knew that Emmett, he's got great placement once the ball is crossed. It happens. The kids weren't anticipating it," Bates said. "They came out with a lot of nerves. They've never been to this before."
Rhinelander slowly got in tune to the pace of the game late in the first half and began to mount some offense. Mason Shinners was fouled on a potential 2-on-1 chance in the 33rd minute and Kyle Wiese sent the subsequent free kick on goal, where it was stopped by senior keeper Arturo Ottum-Cortez. Wiese had another hurried look from long range sail wide right in the final moments of the opening half.
"I think once they got their bearings under them we had some attacks," Bates said. "We had some pressure on them, so I'm super proud of what they did today."
Weather plagued the WIAA state tournament all day Friday. Both of the Division 4 semifinals that took place before the Rhinelander-Notre Dame contest were paused due to lightning. That, plus an overtime finish to the Sheboygan Christian Lutheran-Lake Country Lutheran game, forced the start of the first D3 semifinal to be delayed by roughly 35 minutes.
Conditions were OK for the first half and early into the second, but a flash in the sky could be seen to the west in the 48th minute. Moments later, another bolt was spotted northwest of the field, accompanied by a loud clap of thunder that sent the teams scurrying for cover.
Both sides returned to a wet and wild new world when play resumed following at 7:06 p.m., following a 51-minute stoppage.
"There were times where we kicked the ball and it went into the puddle and stopped," Bates said. "I wished that puddle wasn't there because we definitely would have had some runs on them. That's just the way it ended."
One of those runs resulted in a big break for the Hodags in the 66th minute when Elliot Boridini tripped Matthew King on a breakaway just outside the 18. Referee Jordan Dietrich deemed King's chance to be a clear scoring opportunity, bypassed a yellow card and issued Boridini a straight red card, relegating the Tritons to 10 players for the remainder of the match.
"We knew we had to take advantage of the opportunity," Heck said. "We sent a lot of defenders forward. We were running two defenders at the end of the game. We knew that if we were to lose this game that we would go out and die trying."
The Hodags started the game with a defensive gameplan against Notre Dame's potent offense. That went out the window when trailing by two goals and Bates said the team went all-in once play resumed following the weather delay. Bates said a three-forward formation for the Hodags went to four forwards after the Tritons went down a man.
"We changed things, trying to put one in there, trying to press the box the last 10 minutes or whatever it was. Unfortunately, they were able to scramble out on us and the end result is what it is," he said. "They had Notre Dame, I think they had them pretty well scared there for a while. Once that one went in, they started packing the box and we were pressuring the heck out of them for pretty much the whole 31 minutes we came back out on the field."
Notre Dame outshot Rhinelander 18-6 in the match and had a 6-2 advantage in shots on goal.
Though Notre Dame advanced to and ultimately lost in the championship game to New Berlin Eisenhower, the mood on the field was surprisingly upbeat for the Hodags after the match. Perhaps that had something to do with the child-like amusement of splashing through puddles for the final half hour of their season or perhaps it's because the Hodags knew the gave Notre Dame their best shot.
"Bittersweet's the perfect way to describe it," senior defender Leo Losch said. "We lost but I'd say everything else went perfect. The weather was perfect. Everyone was out there smiling. We got another goal so we didn't get shut out. It was just a great feeling overall.
"It sucks we lost, but I can't figure out a better way to lose than at this field, at this moment, in this weather," Mork said. "It was just perfect. It sucks but it was a great season. That's all that matter really."
In the end, Friday's game was a fitting ending to season and a playoff run that saw more than its fair share of drama - including three straight shootout victories to reach the state tournament.
"A lot of highs, a lot of lows but, you know what? I wouldn't change it for anything," Bates said. "It's a great way to go out, a great way to finish with my boys and I'm extremely happy of what we did this season and what we accomplished."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
WEATHER SPONSORED BY
E-Editions
Latest News
E-Editions
Events
August
To Submit an Event Sign in first
Today's Events
No calendar events have been scheduled for today.
Comments:
You must login to comment.