It hasn’t happened in five years, since the Wilson Bruins girls’ soccer team lost to Lakewood the season before current coach Jason Kirkwood took over, but on Thursday afternoon the Bruins came within ten minutes of losing a Moore League game to their toughest rival over that span, the Poly Jackrabbits.  Instead, a stunning comeback gave the host Bruins a 2-1 win, and the inside track for the Moore League crown in their first game of the season.

For the first five minutes it looked like Wilson (10-2-3, 1-0) might run away with it, as a lack of communication on Poly’s (8-2-4, 1-1) part led to a few “who’s got it” plays and slipups.  The Bruins were more aggressive, and looked like they might maintain a midfield advantage.  In the sixth minute the Bruins had a chance to take an early lead—when the Poly defenders crept up too much, Emily Dillon took a clear kick and ran right down the middle of the field with it, beating Keyana Thompson-Shaw, the lone defender, and even getting by goalie Corin Villasenor before missing the open net wide left.

After that Poly seemed to sink their cleats in a little, and it was only two minutes before a cross to junior forward Jazmine Rhodes, which she slipped by Bruins keeper Carly Farris, gave the Jackrabbits a 1-0 lead.  The goal seemed to swell the ‘Rabbits’ confidence, and they began winning the battle for the middle of the field, keeping the ball on the Bruins’ side for most of the rest of the first half.  They had a few scoring opportunities (a well-placed pass from Rhodes to Alexis Leyba, and an on-target free kick that glanced away), but none found their mark.

For most of the second it looked like an aggressive Poly would continue to keep the Bruins on their heels—rather than collapse and play ball-clear defense, the Jackrabbits continued to push, clearly not wanting to settle for a one-goal lead against the defending national champions.  Junior forward Megan Brock, playing injured, did a good job penetrating, and the Poly back line stepped up as well, with Thompson-Shaw and Matti Sandoval keeping the box clear.  This despite the fact that Kirkwood ratcheted up his team’s intensity, shifting into a 4-3-3 formation with an extra attacker.  Then, in the 70^th minute, after a half of relentless tempo, Wilson’s Emily Dillon sent a cross to Kimberly Marshall.  The sophomore Villasenor came out to scoop it, but misplayed the ball, allowing Marshall to toe it in, evening the score.

Evident of how important this game was for league title implications, as well as the aggressive nature of both teams, it was clear that nobody was settling for a tie.  With the refs calling it pretty loose on both sidelines, there were still ten minutes of intense soccer to be played.  Both teams had their chances—Poly’s in the form of a Rhodes tip pass to Jessica Martinez, which she nudged towards the left side of the goal, where it was just barely blocked by Farris.  Then, in the 78^th minute, the Bruins caught another break, as Carrie Holzhauer sent a pass across the net to her teammate, Kaitlin Hellmann, who was very close to being offsides—with no whistle, Hellmann booted it into the right side of the net, sending the Bruins’ sideline into elation, and sucking the wind from the Poly fans.

“They had us right where they wanted us,” said Wilson coach Jason Kirkwood.  “We didn’t play up to our level for most of the game.  I think it shows the heart and the dedication of this team to score twice in the last few minutes, though.  We got lucky, and it paid off.”

“Their experience got them through that game,” said Poly coach Teri Collins.  “But there’s zero more I could have asked from my team.  Right now our youth is preventing us from completing games.”  There’s zero more that local soccer fans could have asked for from this first matchup—anticipation will be sky high for the rematch, January 27^th on Poly’s field.