Stealing a loss from the jaws of a draw, the Neosho County Panthers women fell to the Pratt Beavers, 2-1, on Saturday afternoon in KJCCC play.
With two minutes left in the match, Panthers keeper Evie McKane came way out of her box to distribute a ball upfield. Instead, Pratt quickly intercepted McKane’s pass.
The Beavers then advanced the ball and Laura Bordiga scored on an empty net as McKane attempted to retreat.
“Evie is a great keeper that has fantastic ability with her feet,” Neosho County head coach Sam Hall said. “It was just a moment where she stepped into a place where she didn’t need to be. She could’ve had a sense about that and made a different decision. But it’s just an error on her part. We have to move past it. She’ll be fine.”
McKane routinely plays high up the pitch, something Hall won’t adjust.
“We won’t change how we play,” Hall said. “We know what benefits us with the personnel we have. We have to have the intention to do the right things. When we start getting out of position, that’s what costs us games.”
While McKane’s mistake was amplified with it happening in the 88th minute, Neosho County’s attack lacked urgency through 90 minutes.
The Panthers’ lone goal came in the 30th minute from Lily Beck. Pratt then equalized in the 62nd minute off the boot of Clara Touya.
“We had to get through the levels and we weren’t quick enough with the ball in the back. We had to get more people in the midfield. We did it well at times. But we got away from what we wanted to do. It’s all collective. Any errors that happen are a collective effort.”
Neosho County dropped to 1-4-1 with the loss, which includes two straight defeats in conference play.
“We’re fine,” Hall said. “I know how to deal with things like this. Now the girls have to realize they can’t feel sorry in these moments. When I’m wrong, I’ll take responsibility. We just need to get back to the basics and reset.”
Up next
No. 2 Johnson County comes to Chanute on Wednesday to face the Panthers.
“It’s a tough game,” Hall said. “They’re a very, very good side. They have quality depth all through the squad. They’ll be physical and technical. They’re everything you want in a team. That’s why they’re successful. We won’t make adjustments just to suit them. We’ll do what we do best and go from there.”
