NEW PALESTINE — Settle in for the night, grabs some popcorn, New Palestine and Greenfield-Central might be here for a while.
When the two Hancock County, Hoosier Heritage Conference rivals meet in girls soccer, regulation time is just the opening act.
For the fourth straight year and fifth straight match, the contest was decided either in overtime or by penalty kicks.
One week after losing to county/conference rival Mt. Vernon in the same fashion, New Palestine defeated Greenfield-Central, 2-1, on PKs at New Palestine High School Wednesday.
After two seven-minute overtimes, New Palestine’s Vivian Miller, Tylar Whitaker and Anna Luker hit their penalty kick tries to give the Dragons the victory.
New Palestine improved to 7-2-1 overall and 4-1 in the conference.
Dragons goalkeeper Grace Hasenkamp got a save on the initial PK attempt from Greenfield-Central’s Callie Means. Addison Bennett hit the left post on the second Cougar attempt. Paige McCarley’s try sailed over the goal.
Luker, who forced the overtime with a successful free kick with just over 15 minutes remaining, sealed it with the Dragons’ final attempt.
“I think it’s just the intensity of the game (when county teams meet). It’s the same with Mt. Vernon,” New Palestine coach Erin Clark said on all the extra-session matches with the Cougars, and the Marauders, too. “You can have two unevenly matched teams or evenly matched teams, but when we play each other every side is going to compete to their best ability and give 100 percent. It’s because you’re playing Greenfield, or you’re playing Mt. Vernon.
“That’s what makes these games always close. The girls, on both sides, are pushing their hardest.”
McCarley, a freshman, scored, assisted by Means, to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead in the fourth minute (36:44).
New Palestine tied it on a free kick with 15:20 left in regulation. Luker’s 20-plus yard free kick hit the crossbar bounced downward and off the back of Greenfield-Central goalkeeper Hannah Skene and into the goal.
Luker, with nine seconds left in the first overtime, had a free kick hit the left post, but this one did not ricochet in the Dragons favor.
Clark added that Miller asked to take her team’s first PK attempt. She had missed the opening try in last week’s loss to Mt. Vernon.
“Grace just set the tone and also, Viv — as soon as the overtime ended — she said, ‘I want the first one.’ She wanted to redeem herself and that’s really rare,” Clark said. “Grace making the save and Viv coming back one week later and burying it, I think that set the tone”
The regulation goals from McCarley and Luker were the seventh of the season for both.
“She’s a dynamic freshman. A playmaker with a capital ‘P’,” Greenfield-Central coach Brandon Steeno said of his team’s leading goal scorer.
Last year, the Cougars and Dragons met in the regular season and sectional. Both contests went overtime. During the regular season, New Pal won 2-1. In the sectional, Greenfield-Central won 2-0.
“They hammered the game plan we had,” Steeno said of how his club played in a heart-breaking loss to their rivals. “We pressed high, dropped in behind their long diagonals. They had one shot on frame in the run of play. Hannah made a nice save in the first half.
“Once we got the two yellow cards ( in the second half leading to the free kicks), that’s one thing we can’t do, give up free kicks near the box. (Luker) placed it well.”
Steeno agreed with Clark when it comes with the rivalries and close matches.
“It’s a county rivalry, a conference rivalry, a lot of these girls play each other in club, too,” he said. “There’s a lot of familiarity and it’s tough to break through. It’s always a defensive slugfest.”
G-C plays host to Lapel, in its first season of girls soccer, Saturday at 1:30 p.m. It’s part of Greenfield-Central’s annual Kickin’ Cancer tournament.
New Palestine travels to No. 7 Cathedral for a game 6 p.m. Saturday at FC Pride Performance Center.
