After once again falling into the depths trailing 2-0 early in the first half the Park City High School girls’ soccer team answered by going on the attack.
And with that, Park City’s fortunes were reversed against visiting Waterford.
The Miners (2-4) bested the Ravens 3-2 with a dramatic come-from-behind victory. Freshman Allison Casey put Park City on the board late in the first half, while sophomores Jessica Dancy and Maggie Reigelsperger each added a goal in the second half.
The Miners took a total of 35 shots Thursday afternoon. Five of those shots rattled crossbars.
“Can’t score if you’re not going to shoot,” said Park City head coach Chip Cook.
Waterford scored twice in a matter of two minutes halfway through the first half in what Cook called a couple defensive breakdowns by her backline.
“(Waterford) capitalized on them,” she said. “They had two shots and scored on both chances. That’s going to happen with a young defense.”
Casey scored the first varsity goal of her career in the 28th minute when she ran onto a ball and outran her defender before slotting it past the Ravens’ goalkeeper.
“That was important for her,” Cook said. “She was having a lot of opportunities during preseason, but wasn’t able to connect. She was happy about that.”
After Waterford lead 2-1 going into the second half, the Miners dominated the play and sent a barrage of shots toward the Ravens goal.
Junior winger Sarah Hendrickson continued her strong preseason with an assist on the tying goal. Having outhustled two Waterford defenders, Hendrickson sprinted to the end line and whipped in a left-footed cross that Dancy calmly trapped and finished to knot things up 2-2.
A few minutes later, Hendrickson had a hand in the winning goal with a similar play, sending in a dangerous cross with her left foot. Casey brought the ball down with her chest to senior Jessie Paskoski who rifled a 20-yard shot off the crossbar. Reigelsperger was there to clean things up and give Park City its final goal.
“I feel like we dominated the play and played really well in possession,” Cook said. “I’m really happy with the way we played. I wasn’t down on them at all, even after those first two goals.”
Following Thursday’s dramatic win, Park City’s preseason is over. The revamped Region 10 now awaits the Miners, who will play their first league match Thursday, Sept. 1, at home against Uintah (4-1).
Cook said she’s fortunate to have a squad of 22 players who go up against one another every day in practice. That’s where the team will do most of its preparation for region.
“We have an opportunity that a lot of teams don’t,” she said. “We not only get to play with our top 11, we get to play our top 11 with an equally great next 11.”
She also said Park City has avoided any major injuries so far this season.
“We’re fortunate,” she said. “But we’ve got some ice packs going.”
And Cook didn’t mince words when addressing her eagerness for region play.
“It’s on now,” she said. “Our region is so strong, we can’t just assume we can win games; we have to go out and win them.”
“We also don’t have the luxury of losing a game and not being concerned about it. The preseason is nice and it’s a little bit more relaxed. We can’t relax anymore.”