Bull Dogs tie against Cougars

About one foot is all that stood in the way of the Columbus North girls soccer team getting its fourth consecutive win Wednesday night at home against Bloomington North.

Kristen Orben’s kick in the final seconds gave Baleigh Drum a chance to jump up for a good look at the goal, but her header sent the ball just over the top of the crossbar. Time ran out, and the Bull Dogs had to settle for a 1-1 tie.

“That was a beautiful ball from Kristen Orben, and then Baleigh Drum got on the end of it,” Columbus North coach Derek Stewart said. “She was really in the air on that and hit it nicely. Unfortunately, it just went over, but that was a sweet little header.”

Both teams remained scoreless in the first half with the Bull Dogs (3-0-1) getting most of the shots on goal with four. The Cougars (3-2-1) took only one shot on goal in the first half, but came out firing more shots in the second half.

Bloomington North’s Aleida Veldman scored the first goal of the game on a Grace Manning assist in the 50th minute.

Columbus North found itself racing against the clock late in the game, just three minutes away from their first loss of the season. A corner kick from Orben in the 77th minute found Caroline Hollenkamp for goal to tie the game.

“Hollenkamp got on the end of that and just kind of snuck it in on her, and it was pretty nice to see that go in,” Stewart said. “She’s got good technique, good player and we needed that.”

The game against the Cougars allowed Stewart to see how his team responded under pressure. This was the first time the Bull Dogs faced a deficit all season.

Stewart said he liked the fight and perseverance his players showed when their backs were against the wall.

“It’s nice to see us at least come back and fight hard and get the equalizer,” Stewart said. “We don’t want to get in that situation, but I think we proved tonight that we can drive back out of a tough situation.”

Columbus North ended with six shots on goal to five for Bloomington North. The Bull Dogs had four saves from goalkeeper Liz Tynan, with three of those coming in the second half.