Mykines powers Panthers
Marissa Mykines was picked last for a reason.
Mead’s fifth player to appear in a shootout Wednesday night at Shadle Park, Mykines sealed the Panthers’ 3-2 victory with a well-placed goal in a Greater Spokane League girls soccer game.
“On my club team I take almost all of our penalty kicks, and it’s always nerve-racking,” said Mykines, a junior who also plays for the 17-under Spokane Shadow. “You just try to do it the way you practice and hit it on target. That’s what I did. But it’s a huge amount of pressure.”
Mykines contributed with a goal in the second half to give the Panthers a 2-1 lead in the 61st minute. Shadle Park’s Ali Fenter scored on a penalty kick with 4 minutes left in regulation to knot the score at 2, and neither team scored in either 5-minute overtime period.
The fifth player to shoot for a team in a shootout often is regarded as the closer expected to seal a game or preserve the team’s chances of winning it. Mykines said she feels an obligation to the team to be placed in that situation.
“It feels good that the team wants me in the fifth position,” Mykines said. “It helps when I walk up there that I have my whole team behind me.”
Mead goalkeeper Makenzie Smith wanted to make amends after watching Fenter’s goal dissolve the Panthers’ late lead. She snuffed out Kristi Wirtz on the Highlanders’ first penalty kick attempt when she dove to her left and stopped the ball with both hands.
“I just try to stop as many as I can,” Smith said. “It’s more or less a guessing game. … Every time you get scored on on a penalty kick or a regular goal, you’ve got to be ready to come back and prove they’re not capable of scoring on you again.”
The game paired the second- and third-place teams in the GSL, and Mead was hoping to supplant Shadle Park as the closest pursuant of league-leading Ferris. The Panthers improved to 7-1-1 overall, 4-1 in league play. Shadle Park fell to 5-3 overall and 4-2 in the league.
Mead took a 1-0 lead when Janae Brett headed in Ashley Hatcher’s corner kick 13 minutes into the game. Brett plays middle defender, but at 5-foot-11 is a great asset on corners, Panthers coach Jason Johnson said.
“She’s been a great target,” Johnson said. “She’s had a number of goals on set pieces. When she’s on with the ball in the air, we’re very good on set pieces.”
Shadle’s Hilary Ambriz scored in the 57th minute to tie the game at 1.
Highlanders coach Lenny Peterson credited his players for fighting back after trailing twice in regulation.
“And it’s not just today,” Peterson said. “We’ve been down goals it seems like all season. Against Lewis and Clark we were down 3-1 and won 4-3. These girls have a lot of character, a lot of heart. They never quit.”
Also in the league, Claire Susz scored an insurance goal at 48 minutes to give Mt. Spokane (6-2, 4-1) a 2-0 win at University (6-5, 3-3). … Stacy Hamer headed in Tara Cronin’s free kick from 40 yards out to cap the scoring as Gonzaga Prep (5-3-1, 3-2) posted a 2-0 win over visiting East Valley (3-5, 3-3). … Emily Andrews assisted on a pair of second-half goals as first-place Ferris (9-1, 5-0) captured its eighth consecutive win with a 6-0 decision over visiting Rogers (0-7, 0-6). … Alix Silha fed Janet Hong at 69 minutes for a goal to give host Lewis and Clark (4-5, 2-4) a 1-0 win over North Central (2-5, 1-4) at Hart Field.