Skowhegan girls soccer eliminates Erskine with late goal

Skowhegan’s Lauryn Moore, left, and Morgan Tupper, right, celebrate Tupper’s game-winning goal as Erskine Academy goalkeeper Eryn Young, second from left, and defender Charlotte Libby look on during a Class B North girls’ soccer quarterfinal Tuesday in China. (Joe Phelan/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image

SOUTH CHINA — After 78 minutes of limited scoring opportunities for both teams, all it took was one moment to continue a historic run for the Skowhegan girls soccer team.

Morgan Tupper punched in a goal with 1:53 remaining, lifting the fifth-seeded River Hawks to a 1-0 victory over No. 4 Erskine Academy in a Class B North quarterfinal Tuesday afternoon at Stout Athletic Complex.

Skowhegan (14-1-1), which is in the midst of its first winning season since 2002, moves on to play Old Town in the semifinals. This is only the second time since 2003 that the River Hawks have won more than four games in a season.

“It’s very exciting, this is not a position Skowhegan girls soccer has been in in a long time,” said River Hawks senior goalkeeper Natalie Cooke, who had four saves. “It’s exciting for sure. I don’t think any of us are ready to stop.”

Goalkeeper Eryn Young made four saves for Erskine, which finishes 11-3-1.

How did they get there?

Patience. Neither team had an edge on the other in terms of attack. Skowhegan came close to its first goal with 8:47 left in the first half when McKaela McLaughlin attempted a kick right next to the Erskine net that was stopped by Young.

That all changed late in the second half when a loose ball in front of the Eagles net met the foot of Tupper, who knocked the ball straight into the net. From there, Skowhegan played back in full defense to hold off Erskine in the final minute.

“I was expecting Lauryn (Moore) to hit it in,” said Tupper, a junior. “It just popped out (in front of me). I was just like, ‘Don’t shank it over the goal.’ I just lightly passed it in.”

“This wasn’t a pretty game for us,” said Skowhegan coach Mike Herrick. “But I told them, sometimes on a day like this, when it’s scrappy and it’s a battle, that’s the kind of goal we’re going to get for the game-winner, and it’s just as sweet.”

Key moment

Tupper’s goal was certainly the moment of the match, and perhaps one of the moments of the season for the River Hawks, who didn’t play Erskine during the regular season.

“We’ve only had two games where we’ve been down all year; we haven’t had a lot of adversity like (today),” Herrick said. “For the most part, we just played and every girl contributed. Then it just comes down (to a goal) like that.”

They said it

“I’ll probably enjoy this (win) on the bus ride home, and I’ll enjoy it more at the end of the season. But there’s so many B North teams that we haven’t even played. I’ve been watching video on teams that we may or may not play. It may be a waste of time, or it may be worth it. It’s great to kind of narrow down who our next opponent is. At some point, I’ll enjoy it.” – Herrick, on how long he’ll enjoy the win before preparation for the semifinals.

“I couldn’t be prouder. We knew this game was going to be tough against Skowhegan, with the record they had. I think we matched up really well, actually I think we basically canceled each other out. (The game) was going to come down to a break or a pass. … We would’ve liked to go farther, obviously. (Senior) Jackie Sasse, in the back, just had a heroic effort. The backs really kept us in the game.” — Mike Falla, Erskine Academy coach