NORFOLK, NE – No. 13-rated Indian Hills kept its early-season record unblemished Saturday with a hard-fought 2-1 road win over Northeast, 2-1.
A late Northeast goal from Taryn O'Brien was the first time this season that an opponent had slipped one past IHCC goalkeeper Lani Mears, yet the Warriors still managed enough offense to hang on for the victory as the Hawks turned up the heat late trying to even things up.
"Overall, I was very happy with about 75 minutes of our play," said Indian Hills Head Coach Anthony Longo. "I thought it took us a good five minutes to get into the flow of the game and we started off on our heels a bit. Once we settled in, we had a great rest of the first half and we played as well as we had all year. Northeast increased the pressure heavily in the last 10 minutes and we weren't able to match them. The last 10 minutes were a scramble, but the ladies played well enough to hold on for the win."
A pair of freshmen paired up to get the Warriors on the board early as Risa Ogasawara netted her fourth goal in as many outings this season just eight minutes in off a Makayla Reed cross to make it 1-0, IHCC.
"It's great to continue to see our freshmen step up in big games," Longo added. "Risa and Makayla had a great combination play to get us the early lead."
Rachel Kaut followed up her two-goal, two-assist performance against Scott on Wednesday with another goal Saturday as the freshman put the Warriors up 2-0 on a free kick in the 20th minute.
"Rachel has established herself as our free kick specialist and again stepped up when the time came and got on the board," Longo said. "Bailey Wiemann efforts won't show up on the scoresheet this game, but she was also fantastic up top and was one of the most dangerous players on the field."
Despite the early lead which IHCC took into halftime, the Warrior headman realizes that his team missed out on some chances to tack on to their advantage.
"Offensively we created a lot of opportunities, which was good to see," Longo said. "We had plenty of chances to put the game away in that first half. As the year goes on, those chances have to turn into goals. But I can't be anything happy with a win against a top team."
Indian Hills (4-0 overall, 3-0 ICCAC) was unable to mount any more offense the rest of the way, and it wasn't until the clock was waning in the final ten minutes that Northeast turned up the pressure with attacks, but Mears and the Warrior defense was up to the task.
"Lani Mears came up big for us a couple times late in that second half. Lani has been very dependable for us, and she makes the saves when needed," Longo explained. "She won't get the shutout unfortunately this game, but without her in net it's a very different result for us.
Additionally, Longo credited another freshman duo for their defensive efforts against the Hawks.
"Hope Ward and Chiaki Ota have developed into outstanding defenders for us," Longo said. "Naomi Pedroza for Northeast is a top-3 forward in the ICCAC, and I thought Hope and Chiaki did a fantastic job with their assignment and kept her from scoring today."
NECC (0-2, 0-2) did break IHCC's streak of shutouts as O'Brien's left foot found the net with five minutes to play, and despite several opportunities to knot it up late, the Warriors held on for the win.
"This was a very even match and both teams had a great game plan," Longo said. "This was a good win for us. Northeast is an extremely talented team and it is a tough place to go in and play. They will be the heavy favorites to win the ICCAC on the Division II side. These are the games where we can see player growth, and I think our players got a lot of experience that will be beneficial moving forward when we get into the Division I portion of conference play."
Indian Hills will be back in action on Tuesday when the Warriors travel to Waterloo to take on Hawkeye (1-2, 1-2). Play gets underway at the Cedar Valley Soccer Complex at 5 p.m.
Scoring Summary
Period Team Time Play V-H
1st IH 8:00 Risa Ogasawara (from Makayla Reed) 1-0
1st IH 20:00 Rachel Kaut (free kick) 2-0
2nd NE 85:00 Taryn O'Brien 2-1