Silver Creek/Forestville defeated Westfield/Brocton by a score of 2-1 in a CCAA Central girls soccer game at Brocton High School, ending the Lady Wolverines’ pursuit of a perfect season with just over a week remaining in the regular season.

“In all honesty, when you look at our record this year compared to what we’ve been the last couple years, it looks like we’re having a down year,” said Silver Creek/Forestville coach Kevin Rice. “But we just haven’t collectively been living up to our potential. … We’ve had moments where it’s like we’ve unplugged, but if you take those moments away, we’re a 10-11 win team and maybe this wouldn’t seem as shocking to people in the paper (this) morning.”

Silver Creek/Forestville (7-7, 4-6) was not intimidated by taking on the eighth-ranked team in the state. Less than five minutes into the contest, the Black Knights had the first chance of the game, as a shot went just wide of the net. The next two scoring chances went to Westfield/Brocton (11-1, 8-1) but did not result in a goal.

Then, the Black Knights broke through first. Just over 15 minutes into the contest, a ball was free in the keeper’s box. After Westfield/Brocton goalkeeper Angel Busch tipped the ball away but could not settle it, Kylie Procknal sent it over the line and into the net for the game’s first goal.

Silver Creek/Forestville’s Rachael Beadle lines up a free kick during Thursday’s CCAA Central division girls soccer game between the Silver Creek/Forestville Black Knights and the Westfield/Brocton Lady Wolverines at Brocton High School. OBSERVER Photo by Braden Carmen.

Westfield/Brocton came back with three more quality chances in the first half in an attempt to tie the score, but were unable to connect. Busch made a pair of key saves for Westfield/Brocton to avoid any more damage, leaving the Lady Wolverines’ deficit at just a goal headed into halftime.

“We got a little anxious, but I think we settled down,” said Westfield/Brocton coach Neil Huber. “After the first 20 minutes, we played a lot better.”

In the Lady Wolverines’ last game coming into Thursday, Westfield/Brocton trailed by a goal at the break, 1-0 at Chautauqua Lake last Saturday. They were able to come back for a 2-1 victory against Chautauqua Lake, and on Thursday, it appeared as if the Lady Wolverines were about to do it again. In the seventh minute of the second half, Juli Smith (of Brocton) drilled a stellar shot from distance, fighting off a defender to sneak the shot under the crossbar and over Silver Creek/Forestville goalkeeper Tessa Karcz.

“One of the things we thrive on is our transition game. We’re able to quickly transition out and that was a good example of that,” said Huber. “Juli has that booming kick. Once she starts rolling, it’s going to be good. I’m looking forward to it.”

After the flawless shot, Westfield/Brocton fought back to an even score with home field on its side. As it turned out, though, the home field played against the Lady Wolverines.

“The field did not help us, because it’s such a narrow field. We’re used to playing at NorthLake, and that makes a big difference,” said Huber. “My defense thrives on pushing the ball out up the sideline. We’re missing probably 20-30 yards on each side (playing at Brocton.) … Everything got crammed in … and we didn’t execute the things we wanted to.”

The biggest example of that came on a corner kick with just over 11 minutes remaining in the contest. Silver Creek/Forestville eighth grader Rachael Beadle lined up a perfectly-placed corner kick into the box that Jaylah Cossin headed into the back of the net for the go-ahead goal.

“My eighth grader, Rachael Beadle, she’s just been absolutely dynamite for us all year,” said Rice. “Her and Jaylah Cossin and Chloe Barrett and Carly Barrett and Jade Bouvier, they all work on timing and Rachael finding them. It’s something we practice. (Beadle) will pick a spot and she knows we have four girls in there that are willing to head it.”

Over the final 11 minutes, the Lady Wolverines pressed hard in an attempt to keep the perfect season alive, but Silver Creek/Forestville held off the Westfield/Brocton attack and kept the ball in the middle third and offensive zone for much of the final stretch. In the end, the Silver Creek/Forestville Black Knights were the ones to celebrate a monumental victory.

“We’ve never beaten an undefeated team in this program’s history this late in the season. They’re ranked eighth in the state, but we played them tough last time. … We were in that game, and we came here believing that there wasn’t this great disparity between an 11-0 Westfield and a 6-7 Silver Creek. It wasn’t as wide as the records would make you think,” Rice said.

For Westfield/Brocton, for the first time all season, it just wasn’t their day.

“Today just wasn’t our game. It sucks, but I’d rather lose now than lose in the future,” said Huber on Thursday. “Now, we understand how it feels and we’ll move forward. We’ll see what happens.”

For the Black Knights, taking down Goliath has become somewhat of a trend in 2019.

“We searched deep yesterday and talked about teamwork and sacrifice — things that maybe we haven’t been on the same page with all year,” said Rice on Thursday. “We played hard, we really did. This reminded me a lot of the game where we went down to Maple Grove and won earlier this year. My program had never beaten Maple Grove, but that was a big hurdle for us. We played with this energy and positivity, and I could see that again today,” said Rice.

Westfield/Brocton has no time to sulk in Thursday’s defeat, as the Lady Wolverines head back to the NorthLake Soccer Complex in Westfield for a home game today against Pine Valley. The game was rescheduled from earlier in the year, when a nearby shooting in South Dayton cancelled school for the day.

Silver Creek/Forestville also plays Pine Valley next, on Tuesday in South Dayton. The Black Knights finish the regular season two days later, at home against North Collins.

NOTES: Kevin Rice and assistant coach Tammy Rice noted the sportsmanship of Westfield/Brocton in defeat, singling out Katie Bodenmiller of Westfield/Brocton for congratulating the Black Knights on the victory. Kevin Rice said, “They were very gracious in defeat.” … Thursday was the first time in 12 games this season that Busch allowed more than one goal. After the two goals allowed Thursday, Busch has still only allowed five goals in 12 games. … Westfield/Brocton remains in the top spot in the CCAA Central division and in Class C despite Thursday’s defeat.

Twitter: @bradencarmen