King’s late header gives Hodags 1-0 win at Pines

EAGLE RIVER — The Rhinelander High School boys’ soccer team’s flair for the dramatic continued on Thursday.

Matthew King’s header goal in the 76th minute saved the Hodags from their fourth straight draw and propelled Rhinelander to a 1-0 victory over Northland Pines in Great Northern Conference play in Eagle River.

Late goals have been the way for a Hodag offense that has mustered only six goals through the first five Great Northern Conference games. Three of those scores have come in the final 10 minutes of regulation and have either tied the game or given the Hodags a one-goal lead.

“They sure give me stress, don’t they, these boys,” Hodag coach John Weigel quipped. “Even last year and the years before, they make them interesting. Luckily we were able to get one. I thought we had some great opportunities throughout the game but we’ve got to start finishing, getting some of these goals to fall earlier in the game.”

King’s goal came off a set piece, moments after he headed a similar look just wide off a corner kick in the 73rd minute. King drew the foul that set up the game winner as Northland Pines’ Cameron Birchbauer was called for a push on the right flank just inside the Hodags’ attacking third. Will Quinn launched the free kick into the box toward the back post, where King nodded it past keeper Mylo Albrecht.

“We’ve worked on our set pieces. The plan is not to hit it over the crossbar, which we tend to do quite frequently, unfortunately,” coach Weigel said. “This time it worked like we planned, like we practices and I’m glad we got it to go in there. It was a close one.”

Otherwise, it was a relatively frustrating afternoon again for the Hodag offense. Its insistence on attacking the middle of the defense did not result in many breakaway chances and a number of shots from outside the 18-yard box. 

The Hodags had a few good looks early. King fired high from outside the 18 in the seventh minute, and Albrecht tipped Quinn’s 35-yard effort over the bar in the 15th minute. King had another look just before halftime that was tugged wide left. 

Albrecht denied Mason Shinners on a header chance in the 43rd minute as Rhinelander attempted 25 shots, but only put 10 on frame.

“I thought we had some good looks in the first half and even in the second half we had some good opportunities with the ball, we’ve just got to change,” coach Weigel said. “Those good looks need to start equating to goals. We need to start putting a couple of them in the back of the net.”

Luckily for Rhinelander, the Eagles also had a difficult time putting shots on goal. Open looks by AJ Muench in the 26th and 28th minutes both went wide and Zach Ritter pulled a look from just inside the 18 wide left in the 39th minute after splitting the Hodag defense. 

Of the Eagles’ 21 shots, only four finished on target. The Eagles did not have a shot on goal in the second half until the final two minutes of regulation. Barak Rappley made a save on a free kick by Cody Vojta in the 79th minute and Ritter attempted to roll a ball to the right post that Rappley smothered in front of Muench as time expired. 

It was fifth shutout of the year for Rappley and the Hodag defense — four of which have come in conference play. 

    Rhinelander’s Hart Hokens attempts to take the ball away from Northland Pines’ Ryan Rydeski during the second half of a GNC boys’ soccer game in Eagle River Thursday, Sept. 14. The Hodags defeated Northland Pines, 1-0, recorded their fourth shutout in five conference games. (Jeremy Mayo/River News)
  

“I thought (center back) Hart (Hokens) did a great job back there,” coach Weigel said. “They tried a lot of through balls. Hart’s speed and his soccer skills, he was able to track almost all of those down and kind of eliminate the pressure.”

The Hodags (5-1-3, 4-0-0-1 Great Northern) maintained their one-point lead over Lakeland at the halfway point of the conference standings. Mosinee sits only three points off the pace in third, after beating Medford 1-0 on the road Thursday. 

“We’ve had some tough matches, a couple ties. Mosinee beat us in a PK, but I’m happy with the boys,” Weigel said. “They’ve just made it through five tough games. We haven’t been beat yet and that’s huge.”

The Hodags have a welcomed break in the schedule. After a five-game in eight-day stretch that concluded with Thursday’s contest in Eagle River, the team will be idle until this Thursday when it kicks off the second half of the conference schedule at Medford. 

“I think you can tell our kids are getting a little beat up there. This will be a nice week off. They can rest their legs and come back strong,” coach Weigel said. “We go right back at it, conference matches right to Medford. It was a tough game the first time, so hopefully some of our early looks we can get one in sooner and not have to wait to the last couple of seconds of every game to end them here.”

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].