In a possible prelude to the Class 4 District 1 girls soccer tournament championship, Northwest held off a furious Seckman comeback bid and beat the Jaguars 4-3 in double overtime Thursday night (May 11).
Northwest senior forward Emily Hanewinkel scored three goals in the first 21 minutes of the Suburban West Conference contest as the Lions (10-12) built a 3-0 lead. Carly O’Donnell, Hannah Pfneisel and Abbey Montana scored for the Jaguars (8-8) to tie the game 3-3.
Hanewinkel has scored six goals in the last two Northwest games.
At 95:41, Lion junior Makenzie Becker took a long free kick that sophomore Meghan Pemberton headed past Seckman goalkeeper Lexi Haegele for the winning goal.
It was the fourth straight time the Lions beat the Jaguars in double overtime, and the conference series has gone to the second extra frame the last five times.
The district tournament begins Tuesday with the top-seeded Jags hosting Poplar Bluff (6-9), while the No. 3 seeded Lions play Jackson (13-4). Northwest beat Jackson 1-0 to win last year’s district title.
About halfway through the second half, Northwest senior Abbey McAteer was injured when the ball struck her in the head. McAteer was taken by ambulance to St. Clair Health Center in Fenton where she was released Thursday night. Her coaches and teammates all visited her at the health center.
Read about McAteer’s ordeal in my column next Thursday (May 18).