The Union Grove High School girls soccer team had an interesting three days in Bettendorf, Iowa at the Tournament of Champions.
The Broncos, ranked sixth in Division 2 in the Wisconsin Soccer Coaches Association state poll, survived wildly fluctuating weather conditions and three Illinois teams to win two of their three matches. They won their matches on Thursday and Friday, then lost their final match on Saturday — and all three matches were decided by one goal.
Thursday’s opener was a 2-1 victory over Springfield but it didn’t start well for Union Grove (6-3-1) as it came out sluggish and were tied 0-0 at the half.
“We were rather lethargic and played one of our most unimpressive halves of the season,” Broncos coach Sean Jung said. “The girls responded in the second half with a much better effort.”
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Springfield scored early in the second half, then Union Grove tied the match at 1-1 on a goal by senior midfielder Julia James in the 63rd minute, assisted by junior defender Marley Busey. Three minutes later, junior defender Gabby Gutman put the Broncos ahead for good by redirecting a cross by James.
On Friday, Union Grove faced Quincy and pulled out another 2-1 victory, battling through high winds, heavy rain and temperatures in the low 40s to do so.
The Broncos scored right off the opening kickoff, however. Senior midfielder Lia Peterson dribbled down the left wing and sent a pass into the box that deflected to junior midfielder Ava Morrison, who scored for a 1-0 lead.
Quincy tied the match in the 20th minute, then James took another Busey pass in the box and regained the lead for the Broncos in the 30th.
The weather got worse in the second half, but Union Grove was able to hang on.
“This is just about the most unpleasant conditions we’ve played in for many years,” Jung said. “In the second half, the weather only got more miserable and both teams suffered. It was challenging to do much in the conditions, but we hung on for the win.
On Saturday, the weather swung the other way to warm and humid, although the wind continued to be a major factor and the Broncos lost 1-0 to Peoria Richwoods.
Union Grove had the wind in its face in the first half, but Jung said the Broncos played good defense and senior goalkeeper Makayla Mackiewicz made four saves to keep the match scoreless at the half.
With the wind in the second half, the Broncos had a few chances, including a breakaway by freshman defender Norah McNulty that she shot just over the crossbar from inside the box, Jung said.
Richwoods scored late in the match on a set piece.
“That was the difference in the match,” Jung said. “Overall, the trip was a great experience. If that final match held any weight to it, I certainly would’ve played it differently, but it was just a “friendly” and not any sort of “title” match.
HORLICK QUADRANGULAR: Horlick won two matches and Burlington lost both of its matches Saturday in a four-team tournament at Levonian Field on Horlick’s campus.
The Rebels (6-3-1) beat Burlington 2-0 and Kenosha St. Joseph 2-0, and the Demons also lost to Sheboygan South 2-0.
Against Burlington, sophomore forward Leylanna Cruz scored unassisted in the first half and junior midfielder Mykenna Isaacson scored unassisted in the second half.
Against St. Joseph (5-4-0), junior forward Anabella Valdivia scored an unassisted goal in each half.
“We had a great showing today,” Rebels coach Becky Hallebach said. “All of the girls on the team contributed to both wins. I was happy to see strong possession and creation of scoring opportunities.
“Our defense played composed and read the other team’s attacks well.”
Burlington (2-5-0) was missing several key players for various reasons and that affected their rhythm during the matches, Demons coach Tegan Rock said.
“That definitely affected our control of the game,” Rock said. “We were taking too long per half to find our groove. We did have moments of spark, but did not capitalize.”
Rock commended the play of freshman goalkeeper Analiese Tremmel, “who has improved tremendously since the beginning of the season and found herself aggressive during the Sheboygan game.”
Softball
UNION GROVE 3, WAUKESHA NORTH 2: An RBI single by Ella Erickson in the top of the seventh inning gave the Broncos the victory in a nonconference game Saturday at the William Oliver Youth Sports Complex in Waukesha.
In a back-and-forth game, Union Grove (9-5) took a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning, but the Northstars (6-5) tied the game at 2-2 in the fifth.
Erickson’s go-ahead single was one of four hits for the Broncos in the game. Ashley Bert added a single, River Jamison added a triple and Karlie Peterson had one hit and drew three walks.
In the circle, Marlee Lange pitched all seven innings, allowing eight hits, one earned run and striking out three.
After losing four straight games earlier in the month, Union Grove has won three of its past four.