Girls soccer: Younger sisters step up in playoff win for Pack
Published 11:21 pm Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Austin’s Isabelle Reuter chases down Faribault’s Mary McCoshen in the corner during the first half Tuesday night during their first-round Section 2A game at Art Hass Stadium. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Score one for younger siblings.
Actually, score two for younger siblings.
A pair of Austin girls soccer players who have older sisters on the team scored their first varsity goals for the Packers in a 2-0 win over No. 10 seeded Faribault in a Section 2A tournament opener at Art Hass Stadium Tuesday.
Sophomore Nikki Summerfield, the younger sister of senior and long-time keeper and forward Chloe Summerfield, and eighth grader Morgan Raymond, who is the younger sister of Austin starting junior forward Paige Raymond, each stepped up their game Tuesday night.
Austin’s Erin Bickler controls the ball in front of Jade Bokman (17) and Payton Putrah (10) during their Section 2A first-round game Tuesday night at Art Hass Stadium. Eric johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Nikki put the No. 7 seeded Packers (9-7-1 overall) on the board when she blasted a shot from 20 yards out to make it 1-0 with 31:20 left in the game and Morgan iced the game when she took a crossing pass from Chloe and put it into the back of the net with 5:48 left in the game.
“I just took it and hoped for the best,” Nikki said of her goal. “At first I was pretty nervous, but I calmed down and played better.”
Morgan said it is useful to have an older sister as a teammate.
“They really help to lead and they just help us both out,” she said.
Austin’s Nicole Summerfield plays the ball off her knee in front of Faribault’s Payton Putrah in the first half of their first-round match up in the Section 2A Tournament. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The Packers out-shot the Falcons (3-11-2 overall) 22-3 in the win, but it was the strong play of their youngsters that finally put them in control. Austin head coach Enrique Camarena-Corzo said that Morgan and Nikki both stepped up at the right time Tuesday.
“It’s huge. They’ve always looked up to their sisters and today was their opportunity. We are one team and that’s the way we look at it,” he said. “I’m really happy for them and they deserve it.”
The Packers will play No. 2 seeded St. Peter in the Section 2A quarterfinals on the road 7 p.m. Thursday. Camarena-Corzo said the team is hoping to not just compete, but to have a chance to win.
“We are not afraid going into it,” he said.