Raiders Varsity Soccer stumped by Everett

Even with the Raiders securing an early one goal advantage, the Lansing Everett scoring threat was just too much to handle Thursday night, as the Vikings beat Portland, 3-1. 

Ella Gruber tapped in a goal, inches away from the left crossbar to give the Raiders the lead first in the 31st minute. 

Shortly after, the Vikings tied things up at one after the ball deflected off a Portland defender and was knocked in on the left side of the goal. 

Minutes later, Everett took the lead after successfully rebounding a deflection off of Raiders goalie, Norah Wagner giving them a 2-1 lead. 

The Raiders threatened to answer back with Gruber taking a shot on goal, but her attempt was thwarted by the Viking’s goalie.  

Everett added to their lead after a handball penalty against Portland, with the free kick evading Wagner as she lunged to the left to try to stop it.  

“They definitely were faster than us, so we had to play more position wise” Roof said. 

The Raider’s defense held strong through the remaining eight minutes of the first half with Wagner making two saves and Kate Kraczon making a tough save on the right side  of the goal line to aid Wagner. 

At halftime, the Vikings held a 3-1 advantage, and neither team found any scoring momentum in the second half. 

Portland did come out of halftime with more aggression, with Raina Spitzley adding a. shot on goal minutes into the period. 

“I think we played a little bit more aggressive,” Roof said. “A couple people were moved around so I think that helped out a lot.”  

The Raiders found more chances including a blocked penalty kick in the 30th minute and a corner kick attempt that was stumped by a Vikings defender resulting in no goals. 

Defensively, Portland found success with Wagner adding two more saves at the 31st minute and 28-minute mark and a penalty kick block with just under 22 minutes remaining. 

Nearing the end of the contest, Kraczon booted a penalty kick in front of the goal and the ball rebounded into play, but the Raiders came up empty handed in the chaos. 

With the loss, Portland now has a 3-8-2 record on the season. 

The Raiders will travel to Corunna for the district quarterfinals against the host on Wednesday, May 22nd at 6 p.m.  

“We need to hold possession and stay healthy,” Roof said. “We’ve played a lot of games without subs, so we have a very small team. So, we want to keep them healthy and keep working on holding possession of the ball.” 

Corunna has a 2-15 record on the season. 

If Portland wins, they’ll play Williamston (4-6-5) for a chance to play in the district final. 

Picture from Portland Athletic Association Facebook page.