Hodag offense erupts in rout of Three Lakes

A Rhinelander High School girls’ soccer offense that had trouble finding the back of the net against larger schools last weekend scored with ease against a smaller opponent on Tuesday night.

Sophie Miljevich scored four goals, Vivian Lamers scored twice and Lindsey Hoerchler added a goal and three assists in the Hodags’ 8-0 rout of Three Lakes at Mike Webster Stadium.

After shutout losses to Eau Claire North and Marshfield last weekend, the Hodags dominated Tuesday’s match, outshooting the Bluejays 32-1. Rhinelander took advantage of a few bounces to score their first goals, and pick up their first win, of the season.

“It seemed like our offense tonight was finally starting to shoot the ball quite a bit, shooting from outside the 18,” Hodag coach Nathan Bates said. “They put quite a few goals in from out there this evening. Our passing and possession game started off a little slow, but it picked up toward the middle of the game and we were able to execute some good runs.”

    Rhinelander’s Ella Miljevich heads a ball out of the air, defended by Three Lakes’ Ayla Connor (5) as Rhinelander’s Lindsey Hoerchler looks on during the first half of a non-conference girls’ soccer game against Three Lakes at Mike Webster Stadium Tuesday, April 8. Miljevich had a goal in the Hodags’ 8-0 win while Hoerchler had a goal and three assists. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Hoerchler got the scoring going in the fifth minute on a rebound after Three Lakes goalkeeper Tessa Christopherson stopped a chance from Sophie Miljevich from the top of the 18. Ella Miljevich added to the lead just over a minute later on a shot from 25 yards out that bounced off Christopherson’s hands and into the back of the net. 

Lamers scored her goals in back-to-back fashion midway through the first half. She made a run into the box off the right flank and fired a shot to the near post off Christopherson’s legs in the 19th minute. She then rainbowed a shot in from outside the 18 in the 25th minute.

Sophie Miljevich rounded out the scoring with four consecutive tallies for Rhinelander. She converted a penalty kick in the 33rd minute following a Three Lakes handball foul inside its own box and then scored directly off a corner kick in the 34th minute that gave Rhinelander a 6-0 lead at halftime. That shot bent in off the far post and, though Christopherson was able to gather the ball on a bounce, momentum carried herself and the ball across the goal line.

Sophie Miljevich added two more tallies in the second half, finishing a drop from Hoerchler in the 47th minute and putting one in from outside the 18 just before the hour mark that triggered the goal rule. 

The scoring from the Miljevich sisters and Lamers didn’t come as a surprise, as the three were Rhinelander’s top scorers from a year ago. Hoerchler also found herself as an active part of the attack all night. In addition to the helper on Sophie Miljevich’s third goal, she had helpers on both of Lamers’s tallies. 

“Lindsey did have a very, very strong game this evening,” Bates said. “She was crashing the box hard. She was really aggressive. She facilitated well. She followed up shots tonight, which led to a couple of her goals. she had some assists this evening. I mean, she did a great job tonight. I’m very proud of her.”

WIAA regulations stated that the game was official after 60 minutes due to the Hodags possessing an eight-goal lead, but the teams agreed to stay on the field and play out the final 20 minutes as an exhibition in an effort to give both sides some additional early season field time.

“Since they haven’t had a whole lot of opportunity to be outside and on the field, as coaches, we decided to talk to the officiating crew and they said, we would be fine with that, to continue on for the remainder 20 minutes of the night to get a little more play time in for Three Lakes and ourselves, which was really, really nice that the Three Lakes coaches and our officiating staff tonight allowed that to happen,” Bates said.

Rhinelander found the back of the net five more times during the exhibition portion of the night, the River News observed. Though statistics were no longer kept after the 60th minute, Hoerchler scored twice and each of the Miljevich sisters scored. Rhinelander also got a goal from sophomore Kiley Pooch. 

It was a quiet night for the Hodag defense as Three Lakes mustered only one real threat in the 57th minute. Avery Gutbrod got on the end of a pass leading a 3-on-2 breakaway toward the Hodag net. Sophomore goalkeeper Rylee Mickevicius deflected the attempt wide, but the Bluejays weren’t able to do much off the ensuing corner kick.

Senior Emalee Detienne got credit with the win. She did not see a shot over the first 40 minutes of action. Mickevicius played the final 20 minutes, making the one save.

“It was pretty quiet back there, but the defense still did a good job at pressing high to keep the pressure on the other end of the field,” Bates said. “They also every time the ball would pop back, they were stepping in front intercepting and sending passes back down to the field. So they did their job tonight.”

The Hodags (1-2-0, 0-0-0-0 GNC) took on Stevens Point Thursday night in a game that concluded after press time for today’s edition. Rhinelander travels to Lake Mills Saturday to take part in a four-team tournament. Play will begin at 10:15 a.m. against Jefferson. The Hodags will play either Lake Mills or East Troy at 2:15 p.m.

Meanwhile both Bates and RHS activities director Brian Paulson confirmed to the River News that this Tuesday’s scheduled home game against Wisconsin Rapids will be postponed. Mike Webster Stadium will be used instead by the RHS track team for the Hodag Hybrid Invitational that evening. The original contingency plan was for the soccer game to be played inside the Hodag Dome, but that space is unavailable following damage sustained during a March 30 power outage. 

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].