Everett girls’ soccer outlasts Penns Valley in overtime in district playoffs
Whenever Everett’s Kaitlyn Maxwell touched the ball late in the game, the fans in the bleachers shouted in anticipation of a scoring opportunity.
Maxwell won games for her team all season with her ability to find the back of the net, scoring 38 goals going into Thursday’s District 5-6 Class 2A quarterfinal game against Penns Valley at Altoona’s Mansion Park. And she did it again with three goals to lead fifth-seeded Everett past the fourth-seeded Lady Rams 3-2 in overtime to send her team to the semifinals.
“We can’t let her get the ball and, when she does, we got to be on her right away,” Penns Valley’s Hannah Montminy said. “We can’t give her any room to shoot.”
Even when the Lady Rams surrounded Maxwell — like they did on her game-winning goal in overtime — she found a way to score. Although Maxwell’s three goals proved to be the difference, Montminy scored twice to give Penns Valley the lead and a chance to advance. Instead, Maxwell ended the Lady Rams’ season in their postseason opener.
Still, Penns Valley overcame a slow start to reach the district playoffs under first-year head coach Andrew Beverly.
“We were actually 2-4-1 to start out at one point and ended up 12-6-1, so it’s been a great group led by a pretty strong senior class,” Beverly said. “I’ve had an absolute blast getting to work with them, and I hope they’ve enjoyed it. Unfortunately, ended a little earlier than we wanted to — but, all in all, it’s been a great year, and I’m already looking forward to getting back to work.”
Penns Valley appears to have a bright future with underclassmen making big plays Thursday night. But it was Everett’s star sophomore, Maxwell, who stole the show.
With Everett trailing 2-1 in the second half, Maxwell battled with Penns Valley’s Maria Lovallo to get a sliding shot off near the net — and it found the back of the net to tie the game with 11:11 left.
In overtime, with three Penns Valley defenders crowding Maxwell, she still found enough space to send a shot toward the bottom left corner of the net. Maxwell fell to the turf as the ball bounced in to secure the victory.
“She’s the type of player who single-handedly can turn around a team,” Everett coach Rom Kalinauskas said. “She’s a great ball handler, terrific ball skills, excellent shot, great soccer sense.”
During regulation, Montminy matched Maxwell with two goals. Fifteen seconds after Maxwell gave her team an early lead in the first half, Montminy answered with her first goal. The Lady Rams sophomore pushed her team ahead with her second goal with 7:27 left in the half — a goal set up by Penns Valley freshman Katie Martell.
Martell hustled to gain possession along the sideline before her pass bounced to Montminy in front of the net.
“Any time Hannah gets in and around the goal, we’ve got some kind of a chance,” Beverly said. “Her two goals tonight, I think, made it 20 and 21 on the year, so she’s a pretty clinical finisher, and she came close on one more in overtime — not quite close enough, unfortunately.”
The Lady Rams developed chemistry and started to thrive in a new system under Beverly, hitting their stride after the 2-4-1 start to earn the No. 4 seed in the playoffs. They played a hard-fought game Thursday night and left Altoona proud of their season despite the disappointing ending.
“I think we definitely grew as the season went on,” Montminy said. “Even up to the overtime of this last game, we gave everything we had, and I couldn’t have asked for a better season with these girls.”
This story was originally published October 26, 2017 at 10:19 PM with the headline "Everett girls’ soccer outlasts Penns Valley in overtime in district playoffs."