Huskies come back in 2nd half to tie against Raiders at Federated Field

Going into its home game against the Northfield Raiders at Federated Field on Thursday, the Owatonna girls soccer team had not list in six games. The Huskies extended their streak to seven games with a 1-1 tie against Northfield.

Their last loss came on Tuesday, Sept. 10. in a 1-0 defensive battle against Winona. The draw against Northfield keeps them on top of the Big 9 Conference standings at 7-1-1, with their only loss being the Winona game. The Winhawks are at the top of the standings with Owatonna with a 7-1-1 record as well.

The Huskies were coming off of a 3-0 win against Albert Lea on the road on Tuesday night. Kennedy Schammel, Presley Schammel, and Averi Vetsch all scored goals for the Huskies in the win.

The game against the Raiders on Thursday night marks the second time ever the Huskies have played at Federated Field, as they won against Rochester Mayo last year on the turf 3-1.

The Huskies and Raiders began the game pretty evenly, as both teams were able to spend time in their opponent’s side of the field. No team was able to score until there was 13 minutes left in the first period, as Northfield’s Danika Bulfer scored a goal with an assist by Kate Hubers.

The goal by the Raiders was the first goal given up by Owatonna’s goalkeeper Anna Mollenhauer since Thursday, Sept. 12 in Owatonna’s 2-1 win against Mankato East. Mollenhauer went five games without allowing a goal.

The teams went into halftime with the Raiders ahead of the Huskies 1-0. The Raiders had the scoring advantage despite being outshot by the Huskies in the first period 3-2.

The Huskies had trouble adjusting to the artificial turf at Federated Field, as they usually play on grass at the Lincoln Soccer Complex. They had difficulty scoring on turf in their 0-0 tie at Farmington on Saturday.

The Huskies finally scored with just under 15 minutes left in the game, as Kennedy Schammel scored with an assist by Addy Hayes. This was Schammel’s third career goal at Federated Field, as she scored two goals in the Huskies win against Rochester Mayo last year.

Owatonna was on Northfield’s side of the field for the majority of the second period. The Huskies had a scoring opportunity with just ten seconds left in the game as Vetsch had a one-on-one shot with Northfield’s goaltender, but Northfield got the save as the clock hit 0:00.

The Huskies outshot the Raiders in the second period as well, with them having seven shots throughout both periods to the Raiders’ three.

The Huskies are tied with the Winona Winhawks on top of the Big 9 Conference. Both of their conference record’s are 7-1-1, with Owatonna having a 8-4-2 overall record and the Winhawks having a 9-1-2 overall record.

The Huskies will return to the Lincoln Soccer Complex on Tuesday against Faribault for their last home game of the season, with them traveling to Rochester to take on the Mayo Spartans on Thursday for their final regular season game of the year.