October 6, 2022 at 8:49 a.m.
Hodag soccer blanks Lakeland
RHS moves to 2nd place in GNC
Hodag soccer blanks Lakeland
Shane Petrick and Mason Shinners scored second-half goals as Rhinelander downed Lakeland 2-0 at Mike Webster Stadium. The Hodags avenged a 2-0 loss to the Thunderbirds in Minocqua on Sept. 8 and, in the process, passed Lakeland for the runner-up spot in the GNC standings with two games remaining.
"The boys came out tonight and played their 'A' game," coach Nathan Bates said. "They looked good all over. Yeah, they had some good opportunities against us, but we also had a lot of good opportunities against them. I would say tonight, the boys outplayed them. They played a heck of a game. Our passing game was on point. They listened to the game plan toward the end for time management and they did it. They played great tonight."
The Hodags dodged a couple of bullets in the first half before taking over in the second half. Rhinelander outshot Lakeland 20-16 in the match and had a 15-6 edge in shots over the final 40 minutes.
The pressure led to Rhinelander's opening goal in the 52nd minute. Will Quinn received a throw in and slotted a pass into the box for Petrick, who made a well-timed run past Lakeland's central defense and finished an open look from 10 yards to put the Hodags ahead.
Shinners doubled the lead in the 70th minute. Again off a throw in, Quinn crossed the ball into the box. This time the ball deflected off a Lakeland defender and straight to Shinners, who fired home in space from 12 yards.
"(Shane) was in the right spot at the right time and then Mason was in the right spot at the right time," Bates said. "The last couple games they've been on point. Their passing and everything. They've looked good. Hopefully we're peaking at the end of the season heading into the playoffs."
Lakeland, led by the conference's leading scorer Yaroslav Myshchyshyn, had some opportunities, especially in the first half. He fired one directly at Rhinelander keeper Cooper Radke who made a race in the 14th minute. Radke denied Myshchyshyn again in the 15th minute and defender Charlie Heck diffused a breakaway attempt in the 29th minute as the teams remained scoreless to halftime.
Myshchyshyn was also stopped on a chance from the right side of the box after the ball caromed around on a free kick in the 65th minute, and had a look from 30 yards just sail over the top left corner of the goal in the 67th minute.
Lakeland managed only two shots on goal in the second half. Radke made six saves in his first shutout since Sept. 15 when Rhinelander defeated Antigo 8-0. It also marked the first time this season that Lakeland was held without a goal.
Bates credited senior Leo Losch for slowing down Myshchyshyn, especially in the second half.
"We talked at halftime tonight that wherever he's at, if he's on our end of the field, we had Leo on him and he did a great job doing it," he said. "Both teams played solid in the first half, but the second half we definitely dominated them and outplayed the heck out of them in the second half."
Medford, by virtue of its 1-0 victory over Mosinee, clinched at least a share of the GNC title. The Raiders led Rhinelander by six points after Tuesday's play. Medford would need to lose its final two contests (vs. Antigo and vs. Northland Pines) in regulation, while Rhinelander would need to score regulation wins at Mosinee and vs. Antigo for the Hodags to earn a share of the conference title.
Still, by splitting its regular season series with the T-Birds (9-3-4, 4-2-1-1 GNC), and holding the better overall record as of Tuesday, Rhinelander (9-2-1, 5-2-0-1 GNC) improved its case for the No. 2 seed behind Medford for the upcoming WIAA Division 3 playoffs.
"That could have some serious seeding implications for us. We have Mosinee next and we're at their home, but this was a big one for us for seeding purposes," Bates said. "If the boys can continue the momentum we have going on right now and they way they've played, it will set us up great. I'm super happy with how we've played the game and we've been having some really good practices. I think, if we can continue this, we'll be doing just fine."
The Hodags played at Mosinee Thursday night in a match that concluded after deadline for today's edition. Rhinelander will close the regular season at home against Antigo next Thursday. The WIAA playoffs will get underway Oct. 20.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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