Wutka's Late Goal Salvages 1-1 Draw for Granby Memorial

Coming down off an emotional Homecoming weekend victory, the girls soccer team was headed for its first loss of the year in its match against Enfield High on Tuesday afternoon.

Indeed, for most of the first 77 minutes of the match, the Raiders outplayed and frustrated the high-scoring Bears to a 1-0 advantage.

But Caroline Wutka changed the entire complexion of the game in the 77th minute with one lethal strike from distance, curling a direct kick to the left of the wall and inside the near post to bring Granby level at 1-1.

“That was a beautiful goal,” said Granby Memorial head coach Gerry Trieschmann, noting that Wutka had a tough game prior to the goal and was shaken up at one point. “That was golden. That was a golden goal.”

The teams played two scoreless overtime periods and the game ended in a 1-1 draw.

With the tie, the Raiders managed to do something no other NCCC team has been able to accomplish this season: keep Granby (10-0-1) from winning.

“I thought Enfield played a great game,” Trieschmann said. “I think a lot of this was due to a Saturday night hangover, if you will. It’s a Saturday night game, and 2,000 or so people were there.”

While Granby Memorial was playing on tired legs, credit should first go to Enfield’s defense, notably freshman Sammy Dumas and keeper Kendall Martin.

Dumas, for her part, was charged with unenviable task of having to mark Granby’s exquisite forward Gabby Dixon.

“She held arguably the best player in the conference, if not one of the better players in the state, scoreless,” Enfield head coach Todd Zenczak said. “A freshman who just stepped up and played fantastic. To hold Gabby without a goal, that’s huge because Gabby is a stud.”

But Granby is more than a one-girl band, and when the Bears managed to mount an attack, Martin (7 saves) was there to keep the Raiders in the game.

“She played outstanding,” Zenczak said. “That’s the best game I’ve ever seen her play. As a senior captain, I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

Martin’s counterpart, Ellie McDougall (3 saves), also played outstanding for the Bears.

“She kept us in this game, without question,” Trieschmann said. “Defensively, I thought we were a little flat.

Enfield took an early lead when Sierra Trzepacz opened the Raiders’ account in the 6th minute by slotting home a pass from Kaylee Polmatier, who stole the ball deep in the Bears’ defensive third off a goal kick.

“I think Enfield came in and put that one in and got us on our heels,” Trieschmann said. “I’m happy that we came back to earn the tie. We’re undefeated, that is a blemish, but we’ve got to learn from that.”

Enfield ran its record to 7-3-2 and, according to Zenczak, should gain some confidence with its performance.

“We can play with anybody,” Zenczak said.

Enfield 1, Granby 1

Scoring: 1. Enfield: Sierra Trzepacz (Kaylee Polmatier), 6th minute; 2. Granby Memorial: Caroline Wutka, 77th minute

Goalies: Enfield: Kendall Martin (7 saves), Granby Memorial: Ellie McDougall (3 saves)

Corners: Enfield 3, Granby Memorial 5