MANDATA - Line Mountain's 3-0 girls soccer win over Williams Valley Thursday was not a game for the faint of heart.
The Eagles, making a push for a District 4 playoff berth, never gave an inch to the Vikings in a rematch of a hard-played game at Williams Valley earlier.
"My players were very tenacious," said Line Mountain head coach Craig Taxis. "They've been that way all season, even in games when we got hammered."
But that tenacity also resulted in five Williams Valley players being injured, three with concussions and two with knee injuries, and while none of the injuries seemed to be a result of overtly dirty play, Williams Valley coach Gary Fetterhoff was frustrated after the game.
Both his first and second-team goalkeepers had to leave the game, and another player, defender Alix Wenrich, was taken to a hospital after showing serious concussion symptoms.
"I don't know if it (the injuries) was bad luck," said Fetterhoff. "Number 9 (Kasey Long) kicked our goalies in the head twice. We were down to our third goalie. I'm not directing anything at their coaches, and I know she (Long) got hit a couple of times, too. But in the last three nights, my goalies have been kicked in the head seven times. The PIAA needs to do a better job of protecting goalkeepers."
In her defense, Long is a striker, and a particularly aggressive and athletic one, and it is her job to rush the goal. She scored one goal, and her collision with starting goalie Lacey Bixler late in the first half knocked Bixler out of the game. Bixler went to her right to go after a shot by Long and fell on the ball. Long, also rushing for the loose ball, fell on top of Bixler and inadvertently got her in the head with both her knee and trailing leg.
Later, another collision near the goal resulted in the backup coming out.
Fetterhoff said the combination of intense rivalries, players tired from playing too many games in too few days because of postponements, and fields made sub-par by all the recent rain, make players frustrated and tend to lead to injuries.
"We're in a stretch where we're playing nine games in 13 days," he said. "It's not flag football. In Britain, they play one game a week, like we do for football. We were just starting to get healthy, too. We had a lot of injuries early in the season."
Injuries aside, there was no denying Line Mountain (8-5 overall, 5-4 Schuylkill) wanted this game. The Eagles contested almost every ball.
They took a 3-0 lead in the first half, with Diedre Long and Tia Kissinger also scoring, and in the second half concentrated on staying back on defense and not giving any seams.
"We're passing a lot better," Taxis said. "Everybody is looking for each other."
Junior midfielder Cally Lenig didn't figure in any of the scoring but helped control the flow of the game by contesting every ball that got near her.
"Cally's been that way all year," Taxis said. "She's a pretty solid player."
Williams Valley dropped to 2-11-1 overall, 2-7 in the league.
Line Mountain hosts East Juniata today.
Williams Valley 0 0 - 0
Line Mountain 3 0 - 3
LM - Diedre Long (Tia Kissinger), 17:50
LM - Kasey Long, 22:30
LM - Kissinger, 37:01
Shots: Williams Valley 10, Line Mountain 15. Corner kicks: Williams Valley 2, Line Mountain 3. Saves: Williams Valley 2, Line Mountain (Maggie Coleman) 10.