LA GRANGE—On one sideline, disbelief turned to delight in a span of a couple of minutes. Across the field, it was another case of déjà vu and disappointment.
Kinston’s Evan Hood netted the game-winner in stoppage time, just after North Lenoir registered the equalizer on a penalty kick in the 78th minute, and the Vikings outlasted the Hawks 2-1 in the Eastern Carolina 2A Conference soccer opener for both schools Monday at Bullock Field.
Hood’s goal was his third, and most important, of the season. As North Lenoir (0-5-2, 0-1) tried to clear from its own end, the ball ended up centered on Hood’s powerful right foot about 25 yards away.
The senior defender wasted no time. Before the Hawk defense could react, Hood blasted a shot that curled neatly into the top left corner, just beyond the outstretched hands of NL goalkeeper Jacob Baird.
Forty seconds later the referee signaled time and the Vikings (5-3-1, 1-0) had escaped with a hard-fought, unlikely victory, on a day in which they were thoroughly outplayed.
“Evan kicks the ball with such authority that we encourage him to shoot anytime he’s close,” Kinston coach Joseph Romig said. “He got the ball where we wanted with a clear look at the net and he came through with a huge, clutch goal.”
Two minutes prior to Hood’s game-decider, Romig was beside himself after NL’s Eric Holloway was taken down by a sliding tackle in the penalty box.
“The officials have a job to do, and I don’t know if they made the right call or not, but that was a tough call to have go against us with two minutes left,” Romig said. “Fortunately, Evan’s goal provided a little karma.”
After the penalty, NL’s Michael Bednarz lined up and squeezed the penalty kick past Kinston goalie Matthew Burwell, who got a gloved hand on the ball but was unable to stop it from dribbling into the goal.
Bednarz’s score culminated a day in which the Hawks dictated play at both ends of the pitch but still came up short.
“It’s frustrating,” said NL coach Donnell Garris, whose team has been competitive in every game but one, including a 1-1 tie at powerful Wilson Fike last week. “We’ve been close several times but we just can’t seem to make the one big play when we need to. We controlled this game from start to finish but couldn’t take advantage of our opportunities.”
North Lenoir outshot Kinston 10-6, but wasted a half-dozen other legitimate scoring chances. Several attempts sailed wide or high, but Kinston keeper Burwell also distinguished himself with a handful of dazzling saves.
The highlight came in the 73rd minute when he stuffed NL’s Nicholas Kennedy point blank, and then hustled to recover the rebound just before Bednarz could reach it with an open net staring him in the face.
“Both keepers were outstanding,” Romig said. “Matt’s effort there at the end was remarkable. (North Lenoir) beat us all over the field, but Matt kept his cool even though he was under constant pressure.”
Hawks goalie Baird wasn’t challenged as often as Burwell but still delivered a fine performance with four saves, including a diving stop of a shot by Kinston’s Rigo Santiago that was deflected toward the goal in the 35th minute.
In the 38th minute of a first half that North Lenoir dominated completely, the Vikings finally broke through on a superb corner kick by Kinston’s Robert Blake that found Ryan Harrell near the far post. Harrell’s header gave the Vikings a 1-0 lead that held up until Bednarz’s penalty kick.
“The guys did everything I asked except win the game,” Garris said. “We’re a young team and we’re still learning, but I think we’re close to putting it all together. We didn’t make a lot of mistakes, but Kinston deserves credit for making us pay when he did make them.”
Kinston returns to action Wednesday when it hosts Goldsboro in a 6 p.m. league match. North Lenoir travels to Greene Central that same day for a 4:30 contest.