Mt. Pleasant, IA- There is always a lesson to be learned from a loss, even in a lopsided one. Last night’s Class 1A Region 3 quarterfinal 2-1 loss for Mt. Pleasant at the hands of Mid-Prairie has a lesson, but one that will not satisfy any member of the Panther squad: losing sucks.
The 8-5-1 Panthers have had one roadblock after another this season after a slew of injuries sidelined key players such seniors Charice Auwerda and Tori Wilson. Nevertheless, the team was healthy and ready for the opportunity to host a postseason contest.
Mid-Prairie had a rough middle-section of the season, losing eight of their 11 contests where scoring goals was the main issue, collecting just seven goals in 11 games. Nevertheless, the Golden Hawks had just dispatched Wapello 8-0 the night before to start off the Region 3 bracket.
While the two were gearing up to face off against one another, there was a third-party ready to help or hinder whomever in its path with no bias, the weather. Sitting at a comfortable 60 degrees Fahrenheit at gametime, the consistent 20 mph wind gusts had the crowd reminiscing on the weather of days yore.
And for the first half, the Panthers were also dreaming of better conditions as Zoey Curtiss lobbed a ball through the air, getting lost in the wind found the back of the net to put the Golden Hawks up 1 to 0.
One of the key developments for this team from early on in the season according to Mt. Pleasant head coach Chris Davis was how to play when trailing. The Panthers’ response was a furious offensive attack in the second half.
Multiple corner kick opportunities, passes to the slot, and mishits populated the second half for the Maroon and Gold, who was desperately trying to find the back of the net as time slipped away.
77 minutes of game time had passed before Mattisyn Wenke got the ball to captain Charice Auwerda and the Iowa Central Community College commit slithered her way through the defense and delivered a perfect pass to Brianna Leonardo, who deflected it into the back of the net to tie the game with 2:40 remaining in the second half.
The final 160 seconds ran off without much fanfare. The teams were heading to extra time.
The first extra period saw the Golden Hawks control the tempo, but it did not translate to any clean shots. Another 10 minutes were added to the clock for a second extra period. Mt. Pleasant controlled the tempo, but it did not translate to any clean shots.
To penalty kicks we go. It was time for attacker versus goalie. Senior captain Eli Heaton, who had saved 80.2% of shots this season, taking on Niva Helmuth, a junior who had kept out 84.9% of opposing opportunities.
First Kicks: Heaton makes the save. Senior Sonya Simon goes top shelf for the goal. 1-0 Panthers.
Second Kicks: Kyla Karnes connects for Mid-Prairie, but so does Addison Peck for Mt. Pleasant. 2-1 Panthers.
Third Kicks: Zoey Curtiss scores for the Golden Hawks, while Mt. Pleasant sails their shot. 2-2 tie.
Four Kicks: Samantha Wunderlich finds the back of the net, as does Bizzie Richtman. 3-3 tie.
Fifth Kicks: Meadow Flynn puts the pressure on by netting her shot, but Auwerda responds to keep the game alive. 4-4 tie.
Sixth Kicks: No good from either team. 4-4 tie.
Seventh Kicks: No good from either team. 4-4 tie.
Eight Kicks: No good from either team. 4-4 tie.
Ninth Kicks: No good from either team. 4-4 tie.
Tenth Kicks: No good from either team. 4-4 tie.
We are now back to the top of the order with the option now available to pick who you want to get the chance.
Eleventh Kick: Lydia Beachy scores for Mid-Prairie and Helmuth stymies the Panthers chance. 5-4 Mid-Prairie wins in upset fashion.
A Mt. Pleasant squad that featured seven seniors, including the most decorated player in Panther history Charice Auwerda, had been kicked out of the postseason in the most excruciating of ways.
For coach Davis, the shock was palpable amongst the team,
“This team is probably the best team we’ve had in a while. Unfortunately, half of them are seniors. This is an unfortunate way to go out end of the season. They put their heart into it and fought back the entire game from being one down and I can’t be any prouder.”
It’s the ultimate dichotomy of sports, while one side gets to feel the greatest of joys of knocking off a tough opponent the other has the unenviable task of trying to put together the pieces. A team left knowing they gave it their all, but only themselves to comfort one another.
There’s always a lesson to learn from a loss. Perhaps, the lesson of this game is to lean on your teammates or to enjoy each and every moment. The prevalent one will most likely be: losing sucks.