Böblingen, Germany – Ramstein's captain described Friday's women's soccer match between the Royals and Stuttgart very well.
“It was wild,” Abby Belote said of the 7-4 victory that helped the Royals take control of the DODEA European Division I race. “I think it got crazier as the game went on.
“I think the whole team handled this unusual situation well.”
The fireworks started early and often, with three goals scored in the first 20 minutes.
At this point, the Royals (6-0, 6-0) trail the Panthers (5-1, 5-1) with a 2-1 lead behind two goals from Stuttgart attacker Reba Karlin. was.
The game turned around 10 minutes later when Ramstein found the back of the net twice in three minutes, giving the Royals five straight goals.
Ramstein's Isabelle Fischer contributed to both goals. In the 30th minute, a low cross from Julia Atkins found the senior winger at the far post and Fisher tucked it into the goal. In the 32nd minute, Fisher passed the ball to Isabelle Donkin, who cut inside and took a long shot.
Fisher said she felt a change in the atmosphere after that stretch.
“We started working more as a team with our passing and not just kicking the ball,” Fisher said. “It’s now easier to find the ball as it hits the ground and goes directly to the player.”
Five Royals players scored, starting with Belote's tying goal in the 13th minute when he deflected the ball inside the penalty area. The senior center back made it 5-2 for Ramstein in the 50th minute with a header off a corner by Kindra Brown.
The latter goal was part of a three-goal spurt in the first 13 minutes after the break. The remaining two goals came from Stuttgart's defensive mistakes, with freshman Audrey Singer pounced on after a miscommunication in the 44th minute, and Claire Boynton scoring the first of her two goals in the 53rd minute.
The junior striker scored another goal in the 68th minute to end the game.
“I always look over their shoulder,” Belote said. “It’s so nice to see the team come together and celebrate when they score.”
Assistant coach Chris Kelly said the Panthers' defensive struggles shocked the team. Stuttgart had conceded just three goals this season before Friday.
It erased Carlin's excellent offensive performance. Freshman Sienna Ingle sparked a mini-comeback in the 58th minute when she saved a ball that went over the end line, cut inside and fired a shot into her top right corner. And freshman Madeline Fleming hit a floaty shot in the 64th minute that beat Ramstein goalie Liberty Snyder (four saves).
“If we had been told before the game that we were going to score four goals, I think we could have had a better result,” Kelly said. “This is very surprising, especially because our defense has played so well thus far.”
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Stuttgart senior Itzhak Sandoval sat on the grass for a moment after stumbling inside the 18-yard box.
He wasn't hurt. He had just earned a penalty for the Panthers in the second half of a tied game against Ramstein and admitted he was a little nervous. With only three minutes remaining in regulation time, this penalty could be their last chance for victory.
“The moment I got to the penalty spot, it was no different than any other penalty,” Sandoval said. “I felt calm as soon as I put it down.”
The captain showed he has ice in his veins on Friday night when he scored a penalty, the only goal in a 1-0 home win.
Until that goal, the Panthers (6-0, 6-0) had been frustrated by the visiting Royals' (4-2, 4-2) stout defense. Chances were few and far between, and Ramstein goalkeeper Eliot Radosevic made a number of routine saves, converting seven of eight shots.
Stuttgart's two best chances came just before half-time, when a shot hit the crossbar and when Christian Ingle slipped behind the defence. Radosevic, making his first start this season, scored the biggest goal of the night in the 57th minute.
“Without a doubt, Rammstein was great,” Stuttgart coach Nathan Garrett said. “The game went to penalties and the game ended. In my opinion, we are evenly matched.”
Ramstein ceded possession to Stuttgart, choosing to sit behind the ball with 11 men and mount a counter-attack rather than press. The Royals confused the center to keep the Panthers focused on the sideline.
This approach hampered the home side until Bennett Scrivens sent a through ball to Sandoval, which led to a penalty award.
“It's really hard to play with the ball. Obviously, if you're an offensive player, you always want to get on the ball going to the goal,” Sandoval said. “But Ramstein did a really good job of holding us back.”
Ramstein coach Dominik Rudess said his team showed belief that it can not only go toe-to-toe with the defending Division I champions, but also beat Stuttgart. And the Royals had a header saved from a corner kick in the 55th minute and a penalty shot minutes before Sandoval made it.
The coach praised the team's overall defensive effort, especially Radosevic and the backline of Jayden Andrews, Kellan Bourne, Mathias Bailey and Xavier Olivas.
“It was just an unbelievable defensive effort,” Lourdes said. “They were very organized and very disciplined defensively.
“I'm so proud of them.”