DANE FUELLING
WZBD.com
FORT WAYNE – Entering Tuesday night’s match with a record of 0-4, the Bellmont Braves took their first real crack at victory against a fellow 2A team when they played at Bishop Dwenger and a brace by Oni Krueckeberg secured a draw against the Saints – a team the Braves will more than likely face at some point in the sectional in October.
Getting underway late at night after a nervy 0-0 draw in the junior varsity contest, the Braves and Saints played evenly for the first ten minutes before Dwenger seized the lead with a goal past a diving Mary Bleke by Ella Close on 12′ for a 1-0 home lead.
A free kick on the ensuing kickoff gave junior Kaitlyn Barton an opportunity to test freshman goalkeeper Joelma Morales and she did just that. Just off the corner of the box, Barton put it right at Morales and the ball went off both hands and directly to the perfectly-placed forehead of Krueckeberg, who smashed it home in an instant, leveling the score at 13′.
The Braves found few opportunities to test Morales again, however, and Dwenger were stout defensively, not allowing a BHS corner or shot on target the rest of the way in the first half.
The two sides came back out for the second half and the physicality picked up. Tinkering with their lineup throughout the night, the Braves found Grace Ruble in her usual position down the right flank, where she was fed a long ball toward the end line. The junior ran it down with her exceptional speed and drew a foul a yard from the corner flag.
The angle of the kick was slightly better for Barton to set up Ashley Bleke on the ensuing free kick, but her header was turned away by Morales, then knocked back in by Ella Sovine after a nice first touch. That’s when Maggie Wilson smashed the rebound right into the hand of a Dwenger defender, drawing a prompt point to the spot by one of the two officials on the night.
Krueckeberg was the one to take the chance from the spot and she buried it past Morales for the first lead of the season for the Braves in the 45th minute.
The Braves did a nice job of repelling the Dwenger attack over the next 15 minutes, but they were unable to create any more chances of their own and the relentless forward attack of the Saints put Ariana Mondragon in a position to slot home past Bleke for the equalizer.
Knowing the match will likely be repeated later in the season and that confidence will be key when that time comes, neither team was willing to risk making substitutions for the last 15 minutes and the match ended in the draw.
The Braves ended the night without a corner kick and they forced Morales to make just one save. The defense for Bellmont looked solid, especially from the play of seniors Kate Kitson and Maya Schlemmer. Ashley Bleke also played to her usual All-State form.
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