October 16th, 2018- PVHS 5 Searsport 2
Penobscot Valley and Searsport faced off Tuesday on a cool and breezy afternoon. It was Senior night for the Vikings, as they recognized seven players before the game. The home team had a lot of energy to start with, as took the lead only 1:50 into the game. Charlie Spiegel took the ball toward the end line at the right edge of the 18 yard line, dropped a pass to fellow senior Kion Tupper, who crossed it to the middle. Shawn Dakin was waiting there, as he put a well-placed header past goalie Elijah Wood. The Howlers would respond to tie up 14 minutes later. Brad McKechnie took control of the ball just beyond midfield, then led a beautiful through-ball to Nick Reed at the edge of the 18. Reed sent a low liner across the 6 yard line, where Grant Kidon 1-touched it in past a diving Kevin Bell for the goal. The tie would only last about 4 minutes, as Searsport capitalized on another header. Spiegel took a free kick near midfield that went over PVHS’ back line. As Wood came out to punch it away, Dakin once again skimmed a header into the back of the net. The 2-1 lead would last through the half.
Ten minutes into the second half, Penobscot Valley got their offense rolling. What started as a simple give and go in the mid-field between Reece Carter and Zach Doore, ended with Doore blasting a shot from beyond the 18. Goalie Bell looked like he had a read on it, only to have it skim off his gloves and into the net. Just four minutes later, after a series of great passes along the right flank, McKechnie sent a cross to Doore, who 1-touched the ball with his opposite foot into the goal. With momentum shifting in their favor, the Howlers kept pressuring the Viking defense. McKechnie sent a corner kick toward the rushing attack, and Grant Kidon rose above the defenders to forcefully head the ball in to make it 4-2. Reece Carter finished the scoring by taking a direct-kick from the bottom of the center circle, which deflected off the bottom of the crossbar and then the goalie, and into the net.
Elijah Wood saved 5 of 10 shot attempts for PVHS, who improve to 13-1. The Howlers will go into the tournament as the 2 seed, and will get a bye from the Prelims. Searsport’s Kevin Bell stopped 9 of 15 shots. The Vikings will finish the regular season at 4-10, and will claim the last playoff spot in Class D South.
