Red Knights girls capture District Crown
North girls soccer come out with a 4-2 win over rival Mariner
A match-up that has spanned a half-decade once again played out Tuesday night in Cape Coral.
This time, it was the North Fort Myers girls soccer team that captured the FHSAA District 5A-11 Championship in a rivalry game over Mariner.
The Red Knights (14-3-2) came out with a 4-3 victory in a back-and-forth affair, with the winning goal coming in the last 10 minutes of the match.
“I thought we had a good game plan,” said North head coach Nick Erickson, noting they were down four key players due to injury/illness. “They were just bought-in. The cold weather helped — allowed us to not have to substitute as much as we normally do. And we can score goals. If there’s one thing we can do, it’s score goals.
“The effort was just absolutely fantastic. You couldn’t be more happy or proud about that. I don’t think they gave us a puncher’s chance with the sickness and in injury. But for these guys to do what they’ve done is pretty impressive.”
Four out of the last five years the Red Knights have captured a district title over Mariner in the finals, but had lost to the Tritons (15-2-2) earlier this season in another one-goal contest.
Of the win over a top-ranked team in the class which they are likely to see again in the state tournament, Erickson said, “I think you’d rather be one-to-one going into that matchup than two-zero, just from a psychological standpoint. It’s going to be a battle if we’re both able to get there, but there’s no guarantee for anybody. For this effort, I think a lot of kids grew up tonight. I think a lot of kids realize if they can go toe-to-toe with the number one team in the region, then why shouldn’t they be able to do that against anybody else?”
Scoring on a brisk night at Tony McKenna Stadium got off to a fast start, as the Red Knights scored in the second minute as Angelina Toro cleaned up a rebound off the hands of the Triton keeper and slotted it home with her left boot.
Mariner found the equalizer in minute 15 as a Madison Arch centering pass from the corner was tapped home by Kelsi Longabardi.
In the 29th minute, North was called for a hand ball in the box, giving the Tritons a penalty shot. Mariner’s Kamila Pena had no issues finishing her chance, giving her team a 2-1 advantage late in the first half.
The Red Knights were quick to answer, as just two minutes later Bailey Root headed the ball into the back of the net off a beauty of a corner kick.
North keeper Hope Cordeiro came up with some massive saves for the Red Knights in the first half, where the came could have become out of reach early.
“She played great tonight,” Erickson said. “That girl had been waiting two years waiting for this opportunity. She’s had some ups and downs, but as I told her coming off the field, she’s a district champion goalkeeper now, and nobody can take that away from her. She’s a leader and was named a captain when Kinsley (Seidl) went down, and deservedly so. I’m really happy for her.”
Coming out of a 2-2 tie at the half, it wasn’t until minute 55 where North regained its advantage.
It was a sister-to-sister connection, for the first time this season, as Eliana found Angelina Toro for her second goal of the night.
“We’ve been waiting on that,” Erickson said. “For her to come up like that, it’s huge.”
Minute 71 brought some controversy, as a flip throw-in from Longabardi sailed into a crowd in front of the net and touched back twine. The ball must be touched by any player, as a throw-in cannot be untouched and go into the net.
After a referee conference, they determined the ball was in fact touched, which allowed the goal to count.
A heated North Fort Myers squad, which felt the ball was untouched and the goal should not be allowed, responded in a massive way.
Mere minutes later, junior Kennel Dominguez struck the shot of the match, drilling the ball from more than 20 yards out and putting her team back up 4-3 with just 7 minutes remaining.
“A superstar was flat out born tonight,” Erickson said of Dominguez. “Whenever she realizes it, good luck. She’s so explosive.”
Minutes later, the final whistle sounded, sending North into an excited frenzy, while the Tritons felt heartbreak.
“It’s unfortunate,” said Mariner head coach Jami Hagy of the result. “We had to finish our chances, and we didn’t. We had some in the first half, didn’t finish, and that’s the close game, that’s what happens.
“We played hard. It’s always such a high-emotion game. Whoever wants it more usually wins, and that’s what happened tonight. We had glimpses of good things we were doing, we just needed a little bit more.”
While the team is obviously disappointed in the result, they know this doesn’t dispel a chance at a state title. The last two times Mariner went to the State Championship match, they had lost to North in the district final.
“This team is special,” Hagy said. “We have a lot of seniors that were up with us during that run their freshman year, and they want it bad. They’re going to go down fighting and we’re still in it. I know they’ll show back up.”
Seedings for the regional tournament will soon be released by the FHSAA.