The Berlin Redcoats girl's soccer team has had a tough time scoring goals of late and the trend continued Friday night when the Redcoats hosted Bristol Central.
Neither team could score in the first half but Berlin's Cara Johnson got the Redcoats on the board with 15 minutes left to go in the game. She used all of her body to nudge in a cross past the Bristol Central goalie.
Central came right back under a minute later to tie the game 1-1 and it looked as if the teams were heading for overtime.
Instead, senior Catherine Voelpel made a run down the right side of the field and struck a beautiful shot that hit the top left corner of the net, just evading a jumping Bristol Central goalie's grasp. It was a pretty strike with just 2:33 left in the game and proved to be the game winner.
"We have talked to the girls about sometimes it's just a matter of someone making a play," Berlin coach Steve Yanosy said. "It comes down to an athletic play and we made two tonight."
Johnson's goal came on a volley from a jumble in front of the crease. As the ball bounced out to her, Johnson struck the ball from 20 yards out and beat the defense and BC goalie for a 1-0 lead.
"We have gone through a few games where we have had a tough time finding the back of the net," Yanosy said. "But the girls have continued to work hard and they certainly worked hard tonight. It's the game. It's great to knock it around and look pretty but you've got to score goals.
"I doesn't get any easier. We have Bristol Eastern and Platt coming up. We played Plainville and dominated and tied them 0-0. It gets frustrating at times but we need certain people to step up. It's understandable when a freshman misses an opportunity. We are a young team. I'm hoping this one will help us turn a corner."
Berlin improves to 6-3-2 with the win.
