JAY — Senior forward Jaycee Cole helped deliver a pile of Heal points and perhaps gave the Spruce Mountain girls soccer team a shot at the postseason on a cold and windy Wednesday night.

Both of Cole’s goals — including the game-winner — allowed the Phoenix (3-7-1) to upset Mt. Abram (5-3-1) with a nail-biting 2-1 victory in a Class C soccer game.

Cole was surprised at first with her pair of goals, especially when the she thought the ball was going over her head on her first opportunity to score.

“I was, but I wasn’t,” Cole said, “because I really capitalized on these opportunities more than I have in other games, and mainly because of Annabelle Collins and Grace Harmatys. They gave me really big opportunities to score, and I was glad I was able to capitalize on them because it was such a really big game for us.

“I am just really thankful for my team that supported me because I wouldn’t have been able to get those goals without them.”

The Phoenix were tenacious in the second half as the Roadrunners clung to a 1-0 lead. Mt. Abram was presented with two golden opportunities to score with a pair of direct kicks, which never saw the inside of the Spruce Mountain net. Phoenix freshman goalie Emma Towers saw to that as part of her eight-save effort.

Cole’s first goal, which tied the game at 1-1, came at 27:32 in the second half, with the assist going to Harmatys — a senior midfielder.

From there on, both teams battled for control as the game appeared to be heading straight for overtime.

But Cole worked her magic again and dribbled the ball around several defenders and drilled the ball past Mt. Abram sophomore goal Emily Kidd with 5:06 left in the game. Collins pocketed the assist.

“I thought my team came out (for the game),” Spruce Mountain coach Kelly Gilbert said. “We were good in warm-ups. We had some intensity for this game. We really needed to get a win. 

“I know they are very capable. They are coming out to practice every day and working hard. I had some really young players step up today and really came through.

“I am very happy for (Jaycee). She has had a lot of chances this season and was able to capitalize on them and really boost some team morale.

For those next five minutes, Spruce went into a defensive posture as the Roadrunners scrambled to score another goal. But the Phoenix made sure Cole’s winning goal held up.

Junior center midfielder Camryn Wahl scored at 26:24 in the first half, with the assist going to junior center midfielder Madison Phelps for the Roadrunners.

Mt. Abram coach Andrew Delcourt wasn’t surprised at the outcome of Wednesday’s game.

“I know they are well-coached and they want to win like everybody else,” he said. “They did a great job. They had great intensity. They played together. They played their guts out all game.

“I think we had lapses moving the ball from inside to out. Honestly, finishing is where we had the biggest trouble tonight. Just congratulations to Spruce Mountain. They played their guts out and they deserved to win.”

 

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