BUCKFIELD – For all of the soccer balls that sailed over the crossbar off the feet of Buckfield forwards and midfielders Wednesday afternoon, it was only fitting that the Bucks scored a critical goal – the game’s only goal – by actually striking the iron.
Lindsay Henderson banked a ball in off the crossbar with 12:42 remaining to lift the Bucks to a 1-0 win over the visiting Rangeley Lakers, the team’s fist victory in four tries this season.
“We’ve been practicing staying with the ball, making sure we follow through the ball,” said Buckfield coach Mike Jack. “They stayed with it for sure that time.”
Kasey Farrington started the play with a through-ball between three defenders just outside the 18-yard line. A quick kick got the ball to Henderson, whose offering looked destined to suffer the same fate as the rest of Buckfield’s quality chances by sailing over the net. This one, though, stayed just low enough to slip the bar. When the ball struck the post, it developed a spin that made the ball come out of the goal as it landed. Just to be safe, Tiffany Dunn used her head to tuck the ball back into the net on the near side, but the referee had already started to blow his whistle and signal that the original shot had in fact crossed the plan of the goal line.
“It’s nice to get that first win,” said Jack.
The game had a defensive tone, at least for Rangeley, from the start. The Lakers (2-2-0) managed just one shot on goal in the first half, that coming in the 20th minute. The forward who took that shot, though, Hayley White, went down on the same play and did not return for the rest of the game.
“I don’t think we ever got into a groove out there until it was too late,” said Rangeley coach Susan Hamilton. “We just couldn’t break loose until the end of the game.”
Rangeley keeper Krista Jamison was busy Wednesday, stopping nine Buckfield shots, including two consecutive shots in the first half to keep the game scoreless. On that play, Jamison tipped the first shot into the crossbar. The ball bounced back to a Buckfield striker, but Jamison came up big with a second stop, and this time held on.
“She’s a sophomore but this is her first year playing goalie,” said Hamilton. “She did really well.”
The Bucks (1-2-1) had another flurry midway through the second half, but could not finish as a cloud of dust enveloped the area in front of Jamison’s cage.
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