The Rams and the Witches played an entertaining 1-1 draw under the lights, and mist, at Cameron Stadium on Tuesday.
Hamstrung by the wet weather, or perhaps needing the first half to get into a groove, neither side was able to convert until Brewer opened the scoring 17 minutes into the second frame.
Finding themselves in a 2-on-2 situation in transition, Witches duo Nick Godfrey and Braden Carr were able to orchestrate a nice combination in the 18-yard box, with Godfrey feeding Carr for the first goal of the game.
“The ball came in hot; the grass is soaked,” senior forward Carr said. “It went through the defender’s legs, I saw where the keeper was, and I put it [near] post.”
But it didn’t take long for Bangor sophomore winger Jasper Sparks to tie it.
Five minutes after the Witches’ goal, the speedy Sparks found himself with the ball and dribbled quickly down the sideline, squeaking by the Witches’ final defender as he turned the corner.
Sparks proceeded to poke it past senior Brewer goalie Grady Vanedistine, as it slowly rolled into the far post and bounced in, and all Brewer could do was watch.
“When I first shot it, I thought it wasn’t going to the net,” Sparks said. “And then I saw it hit the inner post, and that’s when [the emotions] came to me.”
“It felt really good,” Bangor senior Cooper Thibodeau said. “Just to see one go in boosted our confidence again. After they scored, it shifted the whole mood.”
Revitalized, Bangor’s attack was able to get Vanedistine’s blood pumping a few more times but didn’t create anything Brewer couldn’t handle. With roughly four minutes to go in regulation, Bangor junior Zach Shaw almost scored a breakaway goal off a Ram goal kick, but the Witches managed to kick it away before Shaw fully gained control.
On the ensuing corner kick, Bangor failed to put away a loose ball at the top of the 18-yard box, and the score remained locked at 1-1 headed into overtime.
Similar to the second half, extra time was very back-and-forth, with both teams playing physically and somewhat frantically. Brewer sophomore Devin Gideon came the closest out of anyone to winning the game, in the second frame of extra time.
Gideon received a cross in the box and, under pressure, booted the ball toward the upper 90. With senior Bangor goalkeeper Graeme O’Neal out of reach, Gideon’s shot appeared to be golden, before it looped right of the post and out of play. The crowd gasped, and then exhaled.
After the game, both sides expressed their anticipation for their second meeting of the season on Tuesday, Oct. 17th.
“It’s exciting to play here, to play against Bangor,” Brewer head coach Ben Poland said. “We were dealing with some illnesses, and I thought some guys stepped up and played some huge minutes.”
“I feel a little frustrated,” Bangor sophomore defender Lucas Smith said. “We play them another time this season, so we have a chance to get back at them.”
Last year, Brewer beat Bangor 2-1, before they drew 0-0 the week after.
“These games are the ones we’re most excited for,” Thibodeau said. “One of our goals this year was to beat them, so tying them wasn’t enough for us. We had a lot of opportunities throughout the game.”
Bangor and Brewer now both stand at 1-2-1 on the season. Their rematch on Oct. 17 will take place at Doyle Field in Brewer.
