Timlin’s ‘dirty goal’ keeps Bentworth’s slate clean
Bentworth’s Danielle Gondak takes control of the ball from Seton-La Salle’s Marissa Shuckman.
Bentworth’s Beatrice Kossel fights for control of the ball against Seton-La Salle’s Mofoluke Obiri during a soccer match at Bentworth Wednesday.
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
Head coach Tyler Hamstra has Bentworth a win away from a WPIAL title.
Bentworth’s Beatrice Kossel and Seton-La SalleþÄôs Vanessa Hudson both go after the ball during a soccer match Wednesday.
Bentworth’s head coach Tyler Hamstra watches his team play a soccer match against Seton-La Salle at Bentworth Wednesday.
ELLWORTH – In recent Bentworth High School girls’ soccer games, head coach Tyler Hamstra sensed the undefeated Bearcats becoming content to coast by on their talent without having to maintain a high work rate, a dangerous and rarely rewarding strategy.
“They had to get back to playing dirty soccer,” Hamstra said.
Hamstra didn’t mean unsportmanlike, but rather workmanlike.
Consider the message delivered.
Bentworth survived such a game - physical and, at times, sloppy – against Seton-La Salle, winning 1-0 on Jocelyn Timlin’s 57th minute low blast into far corner side-netting.
The victory puts the Bearcats in firm control of first place of Section 2-A, with a two-game cushion over the second-place Rebels as the second half of the regular season begins.
“We had to get tougher,” Hamstra said. “And at least we got tougher tonight.”
Bentworth (7-0, 10-0) benefitted from the nature of the teams’ first meeting earlier this season, which it won 3-2 in double overtime. Senior forward Beatrice Kossel scored two goals in that matchup.
This time, the Rebels (5-2, 6-4) seemed determined not to let her duplicate that performance, marking her tightly throughout the game with one and, at times, multiple players. Kossel spent much of the first half positioned centrally up top with her teammates, playing through her, either trying to find her with passes to her feet or springing her with through balls. But the Seton-LaSalle defensive strategy limited the effectiveness of this approach from the first minute.
The game remained scoreless at halftime. Other players would have to step up, and Hamstra believed they would. He dropped Kossel deeper into the midfield to draw the extra defender away and create space.
“They weren’t playing attention to our freshmen,” he said, “(who) were able to attack down the wings.”
Timlin, a rookie midfielder, broke the tie in the 57th minute when she worked her way into the right side of the box, saw the advantangeous scoring angle and pounced, sending a low shot the other way.
“That’s her, ripping shots, being tough, making things happen,” Hamstra said. “She’s very talented, but she’s not afraid to get tenacious or dirty goals, either.”
Seton-La Salle attempted to respond quickly, winning a corner kick off the ensuing kickoff and continuing to push its attack high into Bentworth territory, but the home team weathered that and subsequent runs.
Hamstra said he switched his team’s focus to defense too soon in the game a few weeks ago and that allowed Seton-LaSalle to get back in that contest. He didn’t make that mistake a second time. The Bentworth players continued to push forward as aggressively as they had all game, if not harder, winning a corner kick with seconds remaining and watching a resulting header sail high and hit the football uprights before the clock ran out.
After going down a goal, Seton-La Salle coach Brooke Mangis wanted to build momentum the times that her team seized it, but found creating favorable matchups difficult with playing only two substitutes. She said she fielded a depleted lineup because of injuries. Bentworth didn’t have that problem, which in turn allowed it to control the second half once it went ahead.
“I knew it was going to be tough to maintain,” Mangis said. “He could just keep putting people in, putting people in.”