- April 26, 2024
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With about 11 minutes left to play in Saturday’s game, Matanzas forward Miracle Porter lost one of her eye contacts. It was tough for her to see. That would be good news for Flagler Palm Coast, but it was too late.
Porter had already found the back of the net four times — including twice in a four-minute span late in the second half — to lead the Lady Pirates back from a two-goal deficit and to a 4-4 tie with FPC.
It was a frantic finish in a competitive tune-up as both sides get ready to head into their respective district tournaments next week as No. 1 seeds.
“When I say my team is as good as FPC, people look at me like I’m weird or something,” Matanzas coach Tony Benvenuto said after the game. “Being down 4-2 in a game like this, it shows (my team’s) resiliency. It can only help them in the future if they’re in this situation. If they can believe in themselves, they can do it.”
In the matchup history, Matanzas has never defeated FPC. The teams have now tied once. But FPC coach Pete Hald said that his team should have left the field with a win after it was up by two goals with less than 12 minutes to play.
“If you’re up 4-2, you win the game,” a frustrated Hald said. “And we didn’t do a good enough job winning the game.”
Although the game has no implications on playoffs, it was still disappointing for Hald’s side.
“It’s a little deflating,” he said. “If you score four goals, you should win. If you give up four goals, you should lose. That’s the way I look at it. I know neither team lost. I guarantee they’re probably more excited about this than we are.”
FPC (14-3-4) struck first when Christen Barney and Madi Hald linked up for a combination play inside Matanzas’ 18-yard box. Hald slotted the ball past Matanzas keeper Bella Benvenuto for a 1-0 lead in the 17th minute.
After a bit of back-and-forth soccer, Matanzas (18-1-2) responded. Porter got in behind FPC’s defense and hit a low shot that trickled underneath FPC keeper Leah Leach and into the back of the net to even things at 1-1 in the 31st minute.
The Lady Pirates took a 2-1 lead on Porter’s second goal just five minutes later.
Not even a minute later, Sarah DiLoreto nailed a left-footed strike to make it 2-2 heading into halftime.
FPC came out of the break quickly, with Barney scoring two goals in the first seven minutes to give the Lady Bulldogs a 4-2 lead.
But with about 12 minutes to go, Porter netted two goals in about four minutes to knot the score.
Porter’s season total is up to 54 goals.
“The season has gone really well for me,” Porter said after the game, with a smile. “Better than I thought it would go.”
Matanzas will end the regular season with Pedro Menendez on Jan. 10. The Lady Pirates will be the No. 1 seed in next week’s District 6-3A tournament.
Flagler Palm Coast will play Seabreeze Jan. 10 in the regular season finale. The Lady Bulldogs will be the No. 1 seed in next week’s District 2-5A tournament.
