Miners edge Mustangs 3-2 on the pitch

HYRUM— The Mountain Crest girl’s soccer team was foiled at the net by Park City Friday morning as the Mustangs dropped their season opener to the Miners, 3-2.

Despite playing new positions and having plenty of new players, the Mustangs showed good effort on their defensive line against an aggressive Park City team. MC head coach Dennis Giles said switching player positions is a good way to ensure his players are well-rounded.

“I think it’ll pay off in dividends once we get our basic stuff down,” Giles said.

Both teams spent the better part of the first half dancing around the goals, with failed shots against the net. Park City’s defense pushed Mountain Crest back to the other side several times, leaving Mountain Crest to defend against a well-organized offense. Park City scored first, followed by Mountain Crest.

Senior Karlee Campbell did a fine job moving from defense to the front line, scoring Mountain Crest’s second goal in the first half.

“We have a pretty much new team,” said Lacey Van Yperen, a senior who switched to sweeper. “We came together really well, I just think we have a few things to work on.”

A new addition to the team is Randi Davis, a sophomore who played for Sky View last year. Davis was cleared to play just hours before the game, Giles said. She was a good asset for the midfield defense, working hard at keeping the ball upfield against the best efforts of Park City’s Maggie Reigelsperger and Makenzie Bothner.

The Mustangs (0-1, 0-0) also had to contend with sweeper Paula Garcia, who effectively covered the field most of the game.

Park City’s offense stepped up a notch in the second half, with Bothner scoring the Miner’s third and final point in a long kick over goalie Kylee McKee’s fingers.

McKee made some great saves throughout the second half, however. Park City attempted several shots at the net, which McKee, in her first year on varsity, effectively routed.

Giles said with the new changes and talent on the team, this season will be interesting.

“All the kids did great,” he said. “We had our moments, we’re learning.”

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