The Chelsea Standard
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Bulldogs rally to tie Pioneer
By Don Richter, Sports Editor
PUBLISHED: May 1, 2008
Chelsea girls' soccer team tied Ann Arbor Pioneer 3-3 last Thursday. The Pioneers entered the game ranked No. 4 in the state in Division 1.
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The Bulldogs (3-0-2) rallied from a 2-0 deficit, scoring two goals in the last 3:35 of the game for the contest's final margin.
"It was one of the more improbable comebacks in Chelsea soccer history," said Chelsea coach Chris Orlandi.
Ann Arbor scored two goals in the first half for a 2-0 advantage at the break.
"Against a team like Pioneer, normally you figure that the game's over," Orlandi said. "You just try to get better as a team in the second half."
This time, however, the Bulldogs battled back.
Less than two minutes into the second half, junior Brooke Ehman slithered a pass through the Pioneer defense to senior Emily Rabbitt who scored on a breakaway cutting the Ann Arbor lead to 2-1.
With 7:01 remaining in the contest, the Pioneers scored upping their lead to 3-1.
"It looked like it was time to fire up the bus, but we came out after the restart with great energy," Orlandi said. "We were all over them and relentlessly pressured their defensive line."
With the Pioneer defense on its heels, Rabbitt scored her second goal of the game, converting a pass from senior Stasi Kanellopoulos cutting the Ann Arbor lead to 3-2.
"Our girls got pretty excited after that one, but it still seemed pretty academic," Orlandi said.
With 2:19 left on the clock, and the normally stoic Pioneer players scrambling for position, Ehman stole the ball and sprinted in alone for a breakaway game-tying goal.
"I was worried we might relax and give up a cheap one late, but the opposite happened," Orlandi said. "Our team kept taking it to the Pioneer squad."
With eight seconds remaining, Ehman again broke free toward the Pioneer goal. With the clock winding down, her shot beat the Ann Arbor keeper, but slid wide left of the pos ending the game.
Preserving the tie in net for Chelsea was senior keeper Jenna Jarvis.
"The teams settled for a tie, but if you didn't know the score, it wouldn't have been hard to figure out who felt like the victors and who felt defeated," Orlandi said. "A comeback like this is rare at any level of soccer. This team learned a ton about itself tonight. After a horrendous beginning, the girls hung together and accomplished something they won't soon forget. This was a special night for CHS soccer."
On April 21, host Chelsea defeated Milan 6-0.
Scoring in the first half for the Bulldogs were sophomore Kelly Fournier, freshman Anna Rode, Ehman and Rabbitt. Recording assists in the first half were junior Audrey Ruikka, Jarvis, Rode and Ehman.
In the second half, Rabbitt scored two goals, finishing with a three-goal hat trick for the game. Sophomore Sarah Bingel and Ehman picked up assists on the goals for Chelsea.
Jarvis earned the shutout in net.
On April 22, visiting Chelsea defeated Hillsdale 9-1 in a mercy-ruled shortened game.
Leading the Bulldogs were Ruikka and Ehman with two goals each. Scoring single goals for Chelsea were junior Kendra Beeman, senior Ellen Stewart, Rabbitt, Rode and Kanellopoullos.
Jarvis recorded the win in net.
Chelsea out-shot the Hornets 34-3.
The Bulldogs next travel to Temperance Bedford for a contest Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
On Tuesday, Chelsea hosts Saline at 5:30 p.m.
On May 8, the Bulldogs host Dexter at 5:30 p.m.
JV Soccer
Chelsea's JV girls' soccer team lost to host Pinckney 2-0 last Monday.
"All excuses behind, the girls played their hearts out," said Chelsea coach Kirsten Smart.
On April 21, the Bulldogs beat Milan 3-1.
Scoring for Chelsea were Diana Uihlein with two goals and Julianna Ameel.
The Bulldogs next travel to Temperance Bedford for a game Thursday at 4 p.m.
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