SHELBY – High off a win over Fremont on Monday, Hart girls soccer Head Coach Joe Gilbert made it apparent that his team would be approaching its rivalry meeting with Shelby sporting an “underdog mentality.”
That mentality became a reality when in the first half Wednesday, May 7. Yet, like they’ve done many times before, the Pirates fought back to claim victory, 2-1.
“We talked before the game about living in the moment,” Gilbert said. “We wanted to live in the present and not worry about anything else going on. These girls are used to playing down. The seniors on this team have played down six or seven (goals) and played hard. We just keep coming at you, wave after wave.”
Shelby found the first goal of the night with 28 minutes remaining in the first half. Senior Alyse Erickson intercepted a ball on Hart’s side of the field, dribbled it up and put it away with Hart keeper Baleigh Klotz as her only opposition.
The Tigers rode that momentum all the way through the remainder of the half, as Hart struggled to convert on several opportunities to even it up. Shortly after Erickson’s goal, she was pulled from the game with what Shelby Head Coach Pete Peterson assumed was a dislocated elbow and left for the hospital in a sling.
“We got a really nice goal from Alyse, but then she got hit and went down,” Peterson said. “That hurt us for a while, because we were trying to find another center (midfielder). We had a little bit of a disconnect there and (Hart) got what they got because they were able to move through the midfield pretty easily.”
Hart picked up intensity in the second half, using the loss of Erickson to their advantage. Addi Barefoot and Olivia Bradley dominated the pace of the game, leaving Tigers grabbing at air in their wake.
Still, each time the Pirates got close to the net, Shelby’s defense – led by Ariana Garza and Micaela Diaz alongside keeper Brylee Friedman – turned it away. Friedman was particularly impressive, knocking away a slew of shots.
“(Friedman) didn’t want that role (of keeper), but she volunteered eventually,” Peterson joked. “Brylee is playing out of her mind. There have been several games where she’s been the one that’s kept us in it. We got outshot, but it’s only 1-0 because she sees the ball so well.”
Bradley found a way to get Hart on the board with 20 minutes remaining in the game. After a handball violation was called inside Shelby’s penalty box, Bradley took the opportunity for a one-on-one penalty kick with Friedman. Friedman initially won that rep, blocking Bradley’s shot. Bradley was aware enough to chase down the deflection however, beating Friedman to knot things up at 1-1.
Just over a minute later, Barefoot dribbled up the left sideline and cut back to the inside. A jumble of players fought for the ball in front of the net, but Barefoot kept control and swept it past Freidman to take a 2-1 lead.
“(Bradley and Barefoot) were tremendously technically sound,” Gilbert said. “Both of them see the field very well and they play a chess game. They’re always a couple of moves ahead and when they combine, it’s dangerous.”
Hart maintained control of the game from that point forward, walking away with a win that has eluded them for seven years. Since their last win over Shelby in 2018, the Pirates had gone a total of 0-5-1 against the Tigers.
The Pirates improved to 8-4-3 overall with a 5-2-1 mark in the West Michigan Conference (WMC). Hart now sits in fourth in the conference standings behind Ludington (12-5, 8-0 WMC), North Muskegon (10-3, 7-1 WMC) and Fremont (12-2-1, 6-2 WMC).
Shelby fell to 2-11-2 (1-7-1 WMC).
