HARDWICK – The Hazen Union girls soccer team evened their record at 1-1 last week in spectacular fashion, edging crosstown rival Peoples Academy (PA) in the closing seconds of the second overtime at Hudson Fields.
Isabelle Gouin took a feed from Kelsie Rivard and outraced the Lady Wolves’ defense to score the game-winner with just under a minute left in overtime, powering Hazen to a 2-1 home win last Wednesday. Marina Smith fed Gouin ten minutes into the match to give the Lady Cats a 1-0 lead that they would take into the break.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
Ellia Speers found the equalizer five minutes into the second half when Rivard got caught in no man’s land, when she came off her line and Speers poked it into an empty net. It was the only mistake of the game for the talented junior, who ended the day with 23 saves before switching gears to offense in overtime to provide the game-winning assist. The victory proved to be extra sweet for first year head coach Megan Mercier, who won a pair of Division III state title for the Lady Wolves over a decade ago under legendary head coach Jim Eisenhardt.
“It’s always great to get your first win as a team and to do it against a program you played for did add a bit of extra satisfaction. It took a couple days to get my voice back and for my blood pressure to go down for sure. The girls played really hard all match, and it was a great team win. Fellow first year head coach Patt Bliss is going to do a great job with that program and I kind of hope we do, and don’t get to see them again in the playoffs!” said Mercier.
Gouin has picked up right where she left off last fall, finding the back of the net four times in Hazen’s first two matches. The senior Vermont All-State selection is on pace to lead the Lady Cats in scoring for a third straight season and break the all-time record for goals scored at Hazen.
PA pressured Rivard and the Lady Cat defense all day long, winning the shot battle 6 to 1. Senior Ella Renaud was equally as impressive for Hazen in overtime, turning away 10 more shots to secure the win. Sophia LaRock made 6 saves for PA as they fell to 1-2 on the season.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
Mother Nature took center stage over the weekend, suspending the Lady Cats Homecoming match-up against Missisquoi Valley Union. Hazen had taken an early 1-0 lead off an early score from Taylor Thompson before thunder and lightning canceled the match. The two teams will replay the match in its entirety at a later date.
Hazen was scheduled to travel to BFA-Fairfax on Tuesday and will stay on the road for a match-up against Winooski on Friday.
