Exeter Fights back to win 10-9 over Wildcats
Down 7-2 at the half, KUA came storming back with seven goals in the third quarter to take a 9-8 lead. Exeter tied the game midway thru the 4th quarter then, with 3:53 left on the clock, an Exeter player poked in a rebound for the game winner. KUA dinged the post and the Exeter goalie made two deft saves in the final flurry to preserve the win.
Exeter came out strong, pressuring the KUA midfield in transition play and forcing turnovers. They scored three unanswered goals in the opening three minutes of play as a result of their aggressive play. Exeter managed a fourth goal with three minutes remaining in the quarter to take a 4-0 lead. KUA’s Cody Danforth finally managed to slip an outside shot past the Exeter goalie early in the second quarter to cut the lead to 4-1 but Exeter did not let up. The Big Red scored the next three goals, building a comfortable 7-1 lead. Justin Wright fired a shot past the Exeter goalie with just over two minutes left in the half to breathe some life into the ailing Wildcats. The halftime was anything but somber as the Wildcats came together and resolved to defend their turf and fight for what they believed was a game still well within their reach. Steve Kontos would not lose a face-off in the second half. He flipped up the ball and sprinted down the field giving KUA the first possession of the half. Less than a minute later Kontos fed the ball to a cutting Kyle Curry who put away his first of three goals. Less than a minute later, forced a turnover on a hard ride and Konots scooped and quickly fed Alex Liebert who sprinted 30 yards before firing for KUA’s second goal of the half. Exeter called a time out to slow down the Wildcat surge but less than a minute later Curry, off a feed from Ben Hayden, scored his second goal. The game settled for the next two minutes with both teams trading possessions and missed opportunities. Then, Hayden dodged around his man up top and fed Drew Caron who was able to beat two defenders and bounce the ball past the Exeter goalie. Kontos won the ensuing face-off and less than 30 seconds later, Chris Morse scored from an impossible angle to tie the score at 7-7. Again, less than a minute later, with 5:40 still remaining in the 3rd quarter, Kontos fed Curry for his third goal to give KUA the lead, 8-7. Exeter countered with a goal with 3:54 to tie the game briefly but KUA still had the momentum and added their 7th goal of the quarter to take a 9-8 lead going into the fourth. With momentum on its side and Exeter struggling to quiet the KUA guns, fans and players alike sensed that victory was imminent. Despite a three minute unreleasable penalty for an illegal stick against the Wildcats, the KUA faithful stayed positive. The DAMD unit of John Planer, Juan Breton, Kevin Vieira, Franklin Boswell-Taylor, and Ben Wyskiel was sensational as they played a high pressure rotation resulting in two turnovers that ate valuable seconds off the Exeter EMO. Jake Gray, who recorded 12 saves for KUA stopped two Exeter strikes from close range to lift the Wildcat’s spirits even more. The tide turned, however, at 8:33, just seconds after the three minute penalty expired, when Exeter found the back of the net to tie the game at 9-9. The KUA defensive unit along with long poles Ben Wyskiel, Franklin Boswell-Taylor, and Cullen Boyle, defended aggressively in the waning minutes of the third quarter, but Exeter finally managed to score after Gray stuffed an Exeter attack on the crease and the rebound was knocked into the net for the final goal of the day. Hats off to the boys and to the courage and perseverance they showed in the second half. It was a tremendous effort and a great game.
KUA (8-3) continues its season at home Saturday against Andover.
