Kiel Outrun Eisenhower In A True Back-And-Fourth Match
The final contest of the semifinal stage was a highly anticipated D3 matchup between the #3 seed New Berlin Eisenhower and the #2 seed Kiel. This one may have been the most exciting out of any during the first two days.
At the 7 minute mark, the Kiel Raiders go on the board first. Senior Taavi Saeger received an aerial ball and quickly deked around the IKE goalkeeper to make the score 1-0. Fellow captain Jasmine Bink was credited with the assist after sending an amazing ball to set up the goal.
Rather quickly, the Lions struck back. The dangerous sophomore duo of Piper Bissell and Evangeline Schaffart combined for the Eisenhower opening goal. Schaffart received the ball near the edge of the box and tucked a tight-angled shot into the side netting to pull Eisenhower level at each.
The second half was a very similar story to the first. The Raiders took a 2-1 lead in the 45th minute off a class finish from Saeger. However, just 5 minutes later, they squandered the lead again. This time it was Bissell scoring off a pass from Schaffart to draw the game level yet again.
Both sides traded quality chances before full time, but neither team could capitalize on the opportunities given. Extra time rolled around and the first of the two periods came and went without any scoring. In the 92nd minute however, Saeger struck yet again by putting a one-timed finish into the corner to give Kiel the lead with just 8 minutes remaining.
The Raiders dug in, not letting anything through defensively. The Lions used all the strength that they had left, but it wasn’t enough to finish the comeback. The hat trick from Taavi Saeger pushes her total up to 42 on the season and was enough to push Kiel over the hump to allow them to play for the state title.
Kiel will have to face the #1 seed McFarland in the state final Saturday night at 7:00pm.
Kiel celebrating after Taavi Saeger’s second goal of the match
