St. Anne’s-Belfield sophomore Kylie Hegemier just kept battling.
The Saints’ standout striker absorbed a shot to the quad late in the first half in a girls soccer clash with Tandem Friends, and after treating it during the break, Hegemier decided to gut it out.
The sophomore came up big late in the second half.
“A girl kneeed me in the quad and it just didn’t go away for the whole game so I couldn’t really run,” Hegemier said. “But Haley Kent gave me a nice ball through and I couldn’t not go for that.”
Hegemier capitalized on Kent’s pass, scoring her second goal of the game on a gritty crossing run toward the right corner, unleashing a shot that found the back of the net and eventually lifted STAB to a 2-1 win over the Badgers.
The goal was the difference in a meeting between the two top-ranked Division 1 (STAB) and Division 2 (Tandem) squads in the state. It also avenged the Saints’ 2011 loss to Tandem where the Badgers erased a 3-1 halftime lead for the Saints and picked up a 5-3 victory.
“She basically had two options — I told her it was mental and she could stay out there or come out and (she chose to stay in). That’s the type of player she is,” said STAB coach Mark O’Donnell. “Playing with a charley horse isn’t going to further her injury. She just had to pick her moments and she’s special — she can score goals.”
Tuesday, the Saints managed to control possession during the battle, settling in after a brilliant Leci Irvin goal just a few minutes into the match gave Tandem a 1-0 lead. Irvin made a strong run down the right sideline and lifted home an arching shot to the opposite post. But STAB didn’t panic.
“Then we just calmed down and started gaining possession,” O’Donnell said. “We moved the ball around the back well, through the center, Haley Kent and Sophia Hunt were distributing — all of them did well.”
As the Saints got into a groove, Hegemier provided the equalizer off a pass from Molly Brooks, scoring with a blast from the right side that went far post like her second half game-winner. Hegemier made a quick turn and one-touch to create enough space to let the shot rip.
The play in the midfield that helped create Hegemier’s goal seemed to wear down the Badgers as well.
“I wasn’t unhappy with what I saw today and I really want to see them grow and learn from what happened today,” said Tandem coach Brian Williams. “I think honestly fatigue set in and then when that second goal got netted for STAB panic set in. I want them to learn that you don’t win from panic — you’ve got to play focused soccer the entire time like we had been trying to play.”
The Badgers battled all the way through despite struggling to create many scoring chances. A long ball deep into the STAB zone in the closing minutes provided a glimmer of hope for Tandem, but the Saints managed to punch the ball back out and preserve the victory.
Tandem, which had to battle through a couple of injuries during the contest, won’t get much rest as the Badgers face Eastern Mennonite Thursday, the state’s No. 2-ranked Division 2 squad. STAB faces off against a St. Catherine’s squad Friday that Tandem beat 3-0 earlier in the season.
