Hannan & Ellis Answer The Bell In Win Over St. Benedict
Darby Hannan and Kara Ellis answered the bell for Concordia after the Cobbers trailed conference rival St. Benedict at the halftime break. The two duo netted a pair of unanswered goals in the second half to lead CC to a crucial 2-1 win.
MOORHEAD, Minn. (10/16/24)---Darby Hannan and Kara Ellis answered the bell for Concordia after the Cobbers trailed conference rival St. Benedict at the halftime break. The two duo netted a pair of unanswered goals in the second half to lead CC to a crucial 2-1 win.
The victory puts an end to Concordia's 2-game losing skid. The Cobbers are 4-3-0 in league play which is good for 12 conference points and fifth place in the MIAC standings. The Bennies fall to 1-4-2 in the conference and 4-5-3 in all games.
One of the biggest factors of the game was a strong wind that blew from end-to-end and gusted up to 30 mph.
The Cobbers went against the wind in the first half and fell behind 1-0 in the 19th minute of play when St. Ben's took advantage of a Concordia turnover deep in their own end to score on a breakaway.
Despite going against the fierce win, the Cobbers were able to hold a 2-1 advantage in shots on goal in the opening 45 minutes of play.
Concordia took full advantage of going with the win in the second half as they held the Bennies in their defensive third of the field for the majority of the second stanza.
The Cobbers got the equalizer from an unlikely source. Hannan, who plays as a central defender for CC, took possession of the ball 30 yards out from goal on the left wing. She hit the ball on her first touch with her left foot and lofted a cross into the penalty area. The cross took a big bounce at the top of the 6-yard box and looped over the top of the CSB keeper and into the back of the net.
The goal in the eighth minute of the second half was Hannan's second of the season. Hannah Mukhtar picked up her second assist of the year after playing the ball back to Hannan.
The equalizer turned the game in the Cobbers' favor with St. Ben's spending most of the second half trying to work the ball against the wind and out of their defensive end of the field.
One of the key moments of the game came in the 82nd minute of play when a St. Ben's attacker got behind the Cobber defense and went in on goal on a breakaway. Senior goalie Kaitlin Petrich made the save of the game when she came out and stopped the left-footed shot as it was going by her and labeled for the corner of the net.
The game-winning goal came with just over 5 minutes left to go in the half. Sophomore Emma Sheflo was able to break past the St. Ben's defense on the right wing and dribble towards the front post. She drew the CSB central defender towards her and laid off a perfect pass to Ellis, who was standing on top of the 6-yard box. Ellis made quick work of the ball on the platter as she 1-timed a shot that went "bar down" and nestled into the back of the net.
Ellis' strike at 84:11 was her team-leading fifth of the year and her third game-winner of the season, which also leads CC.
Concordia held a 10-8 edge in total shots and an 8-4 lead in shots on goal. Ellis had a team-high three shots with all three on frame.
Petrich finished the day by making three saves and is now 8-4-0 on the season.
The Cobbers will return to action when they play at Gustavus on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 1 p.m.
HIGHLIGHTS vs. ST. BENEDICT
