Auer, Rebels blank Lutheran South; Cavs edge Affton in OT
Notre Dame to face DuBourg for district title Friday
But don't be sucked in by the Notre Dame midfielder's diminutive appearance.
“She does a fantastic job out there,” said Lutheran South coach Jeremiah Essmyer. “She's a delight for her coach, and a nightmare for me.”
Before she is done, Auer surely will be the impetus of many bad dreams for her opponents. One of the south area's leading scorers, Auer burned the Lancers for a pair of goals Wednesday afternoon in Notre Dame's 4-0 victory at Affton.
The win sends the No. 1 seed Rebels (14-8-1) into Friday's Class 3 District 2 championship game against DuBourg (14-11-1) Friday at Affton at 6 p.m. DuBourg, the No. 2 seed, fell behind host Affton 1-0 just two minutes into the nightcap. But the Cavaliers bounced back to win 2-1 in overtime.
Despite a slow start, Notre Dame led 1-0 at halftime on a rebound goal from Auer. With the Rebels applying pressure, South goalie Joyce Endicott was forced to come off her line, and the Rebels slipped a low shot past her toward the goal.
South's Sarah Reinking momentarily saved the day by kicking the ball off the goal line, but Auer corralled the loose ball and booted it in.
It was a relief for Notre Dame coach Jeff Robben, whose team had dominated play in the first half but couldn't get a shot past Endicott.
“They made it tough on us,” Robben said. “It was a wakeup call and that first goal by Michelle was a really big one.”
Robben also said the field, which was soggy and slow from the week's rain, served as “the great equalizer.”
The faster Rebels won almost every 50-50 ball, and kept possession for several minutes before eventually getting the ball out to the wing for a run at the South goal.
“Notre Dame is a team full of speedy, aggressive girls,” Essmyer said. “I thought we played well in the first half. We were hoping to get to 0-0 at halftime and take our chances.”
The Rebels led by one as the second half opened, but came out peppering shots at Endicott, determined to extend the lead. Just five minutes in, Auer split the defense and sent a 20-yeard bullett just wide to the right. Later, Endicott made a diving save on a point-blank shot by senior Robyn Meesey; and senior Michell Dimza's 25-yard blast sailed just over the crossbar.
Finally, with 18 minutes to go, Ashley Lauer made a nice run down the right wing and crossed the ball in front to Meesey. She knocked the pass down to her feet, set herself and blasted the ball into the far corner.
Auer got her second goal of the game and 16th of the season with 10 minutes to play. Then freshman Liz Flowers put the final nail in the coffin when she ripped a 15-yard shot off the crossbar, gathered in the carom, and slid it past Endicott with 4:24 remaining.
“I felt like we kept it together out there today,” Auer said. “We missed some chances, but that is going to happen...We started a little slow, but I think that's because we're used to playing the big teams.”
South lost standout sweeper Kelsey Harmen to a knee injury in the final regular season game of the season, so was forced to rearrange its defensive alignment. Essmyer also said Endicott was operating with a knee that was less than 100 percent.
“We've had a few tough breaks in the last week,” said Essmyer, whose team finished 9-9. “But even if those hadn't happened, we would've had a hard time beating that team.”
DUBOURG 2, AFFTON 1, OT
Although Affton had failed to beat DuBourg in two attempts this spring, it was the host Cougars who had positive vibes early in the District 2 semifinal nightcap.
“They had our number this year,” said Affton coach Brian Mesplay. “But all of the games had been competitive, so I felt like we could play with them.”
Thanks to an unassisted goal from senior Gina Oppelt, who booted a point-blank shot past DuBourg goalie Tina DeBarry two minutes into the contest, Affton had a 1-0 lead and a boost of confidence.
The advantage held up until five minutes into the second half, when Julia Conroy beat Affton goalie Rachel Choler with the equalizer on an assist from Megan Fitzsimmons. Despite several good chances for each team to break the deadlock, the game could not be decided in just 80 minutes.
“They have some pretty strong, physical girls,” Mesplay said of DuBourg. “Early in overtime there ended up being a scramble in front of the net, and they put in the game-winner.”
That went to Megan Fitzsimmons, with an assist from Christina Bowe and gives the Cavaliers a chance to avenge a 1-0 loss to Notre Dame back on April 30. Affton finished its season 11-8-1.
“I was more upset than disappointed,” Mesplay said. “Our girls never quit. But DuBourg has some really good players.”
