STREATOR – Reed-Custer scored the day’s first goal only a few minutes into its girls soccer match with the host Streator Bulldogs.

The Comets scored the day’s final goal as well in a penalty-kick shootout, lifting the visitors to a 2-1, Illinois Central Eight Conference victory Thursday as the sun began to set behind the Streator Family YMCA.

It didn’t take long for Reed-Custer (6-3, 2-1 ICE) to open the scoring – junior striker Brooklyn Harding slipping behind the Bulldogs’ defense and delivering a line-drove strike across the face of the goal, past Streator keeper Monsy Gonzalez and into the net for a 1-0 advantage.

Not long after Harding’s goal, however, the feel of the game took a hard turn as the Bulldogs (5-10, 0-5) became the aggressors and forced the action to the Reed-Custer end of the field. A Comets defense led by Taylin Pippenger, Samantha Sprimont and goalie Maggie Deckery managed to turn back the vast majority of Streator’s attacks.

They could not turn back the equalizer about 15 minutes in, however, when senior Anna McMullen worked the ball to sophomore Alyssa Arambula. Arambula continued the attack, with the ball ending up at the feet of freshman Joey Puetz. Puetz lined up a long shot, soaring the ball beautifully over the head of Deckery to tie the score at 1.

“[Harding] snuck right through. She’s a good striker,” Bulldogs coach J.T. Huey said. “I got nervous right there, but we turned it right back around and equalized. And really, from there it was just a battle between the two sides.

“We had glimpses, they turned around and had glimpses, and we just went back and forth, and neither one of us was finishing. Both goalies had some really nice saves, and both defenses did a really nice job containing.”

Streator for the most part controlled possession after the opening few minutes of the first half, but by the time the end-of-regulation whistle blew held only an 11-9 edge in shots on goal. The Bulldogs’ best chances came within two minutes of each other just past midway through the second half – a Puetz crossing pass just a little too speedy for Ellie Isermann to track down and tap in and a Bridget McGurk shot just over the crossbar.

“[Streator] moved the ball well,” Comets coach Aaron Vasil said, “and the only thing we did [differently] as we started to get tired and burned in the middle was change our formation in the second half from a 3-4-3 to a 4-4-3 with a defensive mid[fielder]. That started to change that attacking dynamic.

“It was a fun game, and [the weather] is gorgeous, finally. We’ll take it.”

Reed-Custer, too, had a couple of good scoring chances – including a nice Laci Newbrough shot stopped by an even nicer save with about 10 minutes to play – halted by Gonzalez and the noteworthy midfield/defensive end work of Josie Goerne, McMullen, Arambula, Lydia Huey and Isermann. As a result, the final hour and change of regulation was scoreless.

That sent the match to penalty kicks. Streator notched scores from Huey and McMullen in its first two tries, while Reed-Custer received strikes from Harding in its first and Newbrough in its fourth. Streator’s fifth and final shot was turned away by Deckery, giving Hannah Budick the chance for the walk-off winner.

Her shot to the lower left found its way past the diving Gonzalez, ending the ICE contest.

“It was an evenly matched game, 11 vs. 11, and it went to shootouts and didn’t go our way,” Huey said. “That’s how it goes in soccer. You’ve got to the finish the ball.”