The Slaters faced off against Palmerton on September eleventh after their first loss of the season only two days prior in girls soccer. Bangor was looking to regain their previous momentum while the Blue Bombers were seeking their third victory of the season.
The match started off incredibly fast with Bangor’s Raegan Toomey finding the back of Palmerton’s goal after only thirty seconds of play. This goal would set the pace of the night, with neither team letting up. The Slaters quick start inspired them to keep their aggression and seek a 2-0 lead early in the first half. The wait was not long, as after only another eleven minutes of play, Paige Wallis scored after an assist from Hannah Hartzell. Bangor’s defense was playing strong up until this second goal. They found out that giving Palmerton’s Aubrey Frable too much space would be their weakness in this matchup. Only thirty seconds after Wallis’ goal, Frable was able to use her speed, race through Bangor’s defense and make it a one score game. The Slaters’ defense would leave Frable a gap again to find the net at the sixteen minute mark. Neither team allowed another score before the end of the first half, however that does not mean neither team had a chance. Bangor was awarded a penalty before the end of the half, which went wide. It was clear something needed to change heading into the second half.
After a halftime pep-talk, Bangor found their aggression again, with Kelly Snow giving them their third score of the night after ten minutes of play. However, Palmerton’s Aubrey Frable was determined to give herself a hat trick on the night, and would do so twenty minutes into the second half, tying the game up at 3-3. Coming off a loss last week, the Slaters knew they needed to bounce back, and Reagan Toomey did just that. She went on to score two goals before full time, winning Bangor the game and giving her a hat trick of her own. Although, Palmerton had many shots on net before full time, Slater’s Olivia Braddock denied all of their opportunities to score with save after save to finish off the game.
Overall a striking display by both teams, with both Aubrey Frable and Reagan Toomey both earning hat tricks. It was an impressive night from Olivia Braddock in the Slaters net. Bangor is 6-1 with their next matchup being against Jim Thorpe September 13, who are currently seeking their first victory of the season. Palmerton are now 2-3-1. They take on Moravian next who are currently 3-1-1.
