GIRLS SOCCER: Mazur’s OT heroics lift No. 3 Notre Dame Prep past No. 2 Country Day
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
BEVERLY HILLS — Timing is everything.
Pontiac Notre Dame Prep forward Sarah Mazur couldn’t have picked a better time to score her first goal of the season.
Mazur knocked in the game’s only goal in the first overtime, as Division 3 third-ranked Notre Dame Prep stymied No. 2 Birmingham Detroit Country Day, 1-0, Thursday in a girls soccer district semifinal at DCD’s indoor stadium.
“It was my first goal of the season. I had a similar chance in the first half where I didn’t run onto the ball hard enough. Lessoned learned, because this time I did run onto it and was able to get my foot on it,” smiled Mazur.
TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT: Pontiac Notre Dame Prep’s Lindsey Klei (right) and Birmingham Detroit Country Day’s Jessica Carr battle for possession during Friday’s Division 3 district semifinal. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt
On the goal, junior Taylor Timko beat her mark, spun around and her quick left-footed pass was slightly deflected over to open space 15 yards in front of the goal. An on-rushing Mazur pounced on the opportunity and sent the ball inside the right post with 7:13 left in the first overtime.
“I guess I picked the right time to score my first goal of the season, right?” added Mazur.
Notre Dame Prep coach Jimmy Stachura was glad to have Mazur get the monkey off her back.
“She’s been a little snakebit all season,” noted Stachura. “This was her first goal. She had been working hard all season and finally she had an opportunity and buried it. It couldn’t have come at a better time.”
Notre Dame Prep and Country Day (14-3-3) were virtual identical twins Thursday night, with Prep holding a slight 14-12 shots advantage, including 8-7 with shots directly on frame. Country Day served up a 3-2 edge on cornerkicks.
“It was a classic game,” sighed Country Day coach Bob Bukari, who team lost in the district finals to NDP last season. “The game was dead even. They had chances and we had chances. We had a girl miss an open netter and we had more corners on them. I thought both teams did a great job. They just finished the one opportunity and we didn’t.”
Country Day had two great chances, including eight minutes into the game where a shot was punched over the crossbar by NDP goalkeeper Alex Arnoldy. DCD also had a grand opportunity midway through the second half, but a shot on an open net from 20 yards out sailed just above the crossbar.
“We always seem to play them. They beat us now two years in a row. We beat them 10 years in a row and were on a run. Now, they are on a run,” reminded Bukari.
Arnoldy finished with seven saves for Notre Dame Prep (17-2-2), which will play Clawson at 3 p.m. Saturday at Country Day.
The Fighting Irish reached the state semifinals last season. The ultimate goal is to advance one step further this season.
“I know people have talked about anything less than playing in the state championship game this season could be a failure. But we’re 17-2-2 and had a great season,” said Stachura. “We’ll enjoy this (win), then get ready for Clawson. Then we’ll worry about the regional semifinal, take our time, then the regional finals, take our time. We need to take it one game at a time and not get too far ahead of ourselves. We’ll worry about the state semifinals if we get there. It’s a seven-game process and we understand that.”
To submit information to www.northoaklandsports.com, e-mail dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com. To advertise, e-mail advertising@northoaklandsports.com . Follow us on Twitter @LocalSportsFans and more than a dozen other social media networks.
FOR MORE SOCCER COVERAGE: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=soccer&x=0&y=0
Have photos or video of this event that you wish to share? E-mail pertinent information to www.northoaklandsports.com Senior Editor Dan Stickradt at dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com or e-mail results@northoaklandsports.com.
Category: Featured Articles, High School, High School (M-Z), Most Recently Updated Stories, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep, Prep Wraps, Soccer, Sport, Top Stories, Uncategorized
