Leopards escape with 1-0 OT win in Carolina 1A soccer

By Brandon Davis
Published in Sports on April 22, 2016 1:48 PM

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bdavis@newsargus.com

Lexi Mercer sat on the bench, put on her coat and watched.

Rosewood's leading scorer injured her knee against Princeton on Wednesday. Her absence gave the Eagles an unexpected challenge against Carolina 1-A Conference foe Lakewood.

Mercer played limited minutes in each half as the Leopards won 1-0 in double overtime on Wednesday evening.

"We said, 'play the first 20 minutes to see how it feels, and we'll take you out'," Rosewood head coach Kevin Martin said. "She asked if I could put her in, but it wasn't to be."

Sophomore Tayzlie Triple headed the ball to Mercer in the opening minutes. She dribbled toward the goal, but Lakewood's goalkeeper denied Mercer's shot. She attacked the goal again, but the Leopards' defense suffocated Mercer's every move.

That's when Rosewood woke up on defense.

Lakewood senior Brianna Lindley attacked the Eagles' net -- putting Rosewood's Tiffany Baldwin and Jessica Conger on high alert. Baldwin received a pass from Conger and kicked the ball to midfield for the offense to take over.

Mercer dribbled toward the goal, but Lakewood sophomore Labria Williams shadowed the Rosewood striker. Mercer attacked the goal one more time before she headed to the bench with 19 minutes remaining in the first half.

The Eagles' defense protected its goal.

Conger and Baldwin kicked the ball away from the Leopards. They trapped the balls with their chests to steer possession toward midfielder Ada Rivera, who fired a long shot to the goal, but the ball soared past the net.

Junior Payton Lane attempted to score off corner kicks, but the teams remained scoreless at halftime.

The Eagles attacked the goal throughout the second half, but missed opportunities. Mercer entered the game with 15 minutes remaining in regulation, but sat on the bench after 10 minutes of action.

Rosewood fought for the remaining five minutes, but the horn sounded.

Overtime.

Mercer never returned, and the Leopards struck for the game's lone goal. Lindley dribbled toward net, launched a shot and put Lakewood on the board.

The Eagles utilized Rivera and Lane for the final 10 minutes of overtime. Rosewood couldn't capitalize on the chances.

"We had hopes of winning conference," Martin said. "They're gone now because we've lost three games now, so they're (Eagles) heartbroken."

Rosewood (10-5-0 overall, 7-3-0 CC) plays host North Duplin on April 26.