Up a goal April 23 at Krantz Field, a lengthy lightning delay forced the Blair High School boys soccer team to protect its lead for 5 minutes and 40 seconds more against a rested opponent.
“I just had to trust my defense, really,” Bears goalkeeper Luke Donner said. “I believe in them.”
The hour-plus break gave Lincoln Northwest time to build an offensive game plan, but BHS still managed a 2-1 victory during the Eastern Midlands Conference (EMC) Tournament's ninth-place game. It was the Bears' only opportunity to play during the tourney and it took advantage, improving to 5-7 overall.
The Falcons, meanwhile, dropped to 4-8 after previously securing a first-round EMC win against Lincoln Standing Bear on April 22.
“It was probably the weirdest game I've ever played,” Blair's Drew Wulf said. “We didn't have the greatest start, but we kept pushing.”
Northwest led 1-0 at halftime and just before Isaac Field finally scored the Bears' first goal during the 45th minute. The attack started with a Victor Hernandez free kick and ended off of his cleat after Jarred Kros had his own attempt at the goal.
“I was waiting for (the ball) on the first one and then another foot hit it and another foot hit it,” Field said. “And then I was just there when it popped right to me.”
The score remained 1-1 for nearly 30 minutes with Wulf unable to score the go-ahead goal in a 1-on-1 situation during the 49th minute. The next time the BHS junior made a successful run, however, the Falcons' keeper couldn't stop him.
He scored what amounted to the game-winner just before before the first lightning strike in the 75th minute.
“I was mad at myself, especially in the first half,” Wulf said. “I felt like I didn't play very well until that moment, really. I didn't have a lot of impact.”
The Bear made his mark just in time, though, and coach Peter Massa's team earned its second win against Northwest of the season. It had to wait to play the last 5:40, but, when Blair finally did, it won.
“We sealed the deal,” Wulf said. “We had a great defense after that.”
BHS next hosts its regular season finale 7:30 p.m. today against Elkhorn.
EMC TOURNAMENT LINE SCORE
April 23
Blair 2, Lincoln Northwest 1
LNW (4-8) 1 0 — 1
BHS (5-7) 0 2 — 2
Goals: BHS — Isaac Field 1, Drew Wulf 1. LNW — Darrion Smith 1. Winning goalkeeper: Luke Donner.
