Mariah Hobson breaks record, leads Princeton into regional final

Entering Tuesday’s Class 1A Princeton Regional semifinal, PHS junior Mariah Hobson knew she was within striking distance of the school’s single-season scoring record.

However, her focus was on helping the Tigresses advance.

Hobson ended up doing both.

The speedster scored four goals to bring her season total to 58, breaking the old mark of 56 set by Jasmine Kunkel, while leading No. 4-seeded Princeton to a 6-2 victory over No. 5 Hinckley-Big Rock.

“Honestly, it was like chills down my body,” Hobson said about breaking the record. “I didn’t even think it was real for a second. I mean, I’ve been working since I was 3, so it’s a dream of mine, and I’m really glad I got to do it with my best friends on the field with me.

“That wasn’t even my goal [for tonight]. The goal was to take the dub. I didn’t care if I got the record or not. I just wanted us to win as a team. It was a good add-on for me to get the record tonight.”

Hobson and the Tigresses (16-7) will face No. 6 Genoa-Kingston (7-8-1) in the regional final at 6 p.m. Friday.

The Cogs upset No. 2 Oregon, 5-4, in penalty kicks in Tuesday’s first game.

“I think if we play well, we have a really good shot to win,” said PHS David Gray, whose team advanced to a supersectional last season. “I feel confident in our team. But we can’t come out and play poorly and expect good things to happen. We have to get rest tonight, get our legs back under us over the next day, and then Thursday we have to start locking back in to get ready for Friday.”

Hobson put the Tigresses ahead early Tuesday, racing past the H-BR defense on a through ball from Nora Schneider for a 1-0 lead 4:55 into the match.

She scored twice more in the first half on assists from Maggie Davis and another from Schneider to put PHS ahead, 3-0.

“Our mids gave me those easy balls right through the center,” Hobson said. “I didn’t have to run as fast as I normally do to win those balls. So it was pretty much everybody else’s work, and I was just there to clean up.”

After Hobson’s third goal, H-BR responded immediately as Ashleigh Wackerlin scored only 11 seconds later.

The Royals, who beat PHS 3-2 on April 28, pulled within a goal two minutes later when Melissa Margo scored on a scramble in front of the net off a corner kick from Wackerlin.

“We just did the best we could,” H-BR coach Melissa Jennings said. “They kept playing, and that’s the big thing is you can’t get down no matter how many goals are scored. We came back and scored two goals in a five-minute period. Unfortunately, they have the depth we don’t, and two of our key players got hurt, so that kills us right there.”

The Tigresses led 3-2 at halftime but immediately created some separation after the break.

Just 22 seconds into the second half, Hobson scored her fourth goal on another assist from Schneider, who then found the back of the net herself 2 ½ minutes later on an assist from Torrie Segerstrom.

Schneider capped the scoring with a goal with 12:24 left.

“When we went up three, we were probably feeling very comfortable, and then they scored two, and we really could have broke and let them back in because they absolutely had all the momentum at the moment, but getting to halftime was important so we could settle down and collect ourselves. Then scoring real quick in the second half was huge.”

Genoa-Kingston 5, Oregon 4

Jaida Modesto scored with 49 seconds left in regulation to force overtime.

“That was a great cross, and we were able to take it down and get it right past the goalie, so that was fabulous,” G-K coach Holly Lippold said. “I think we got our second wind and were connecting passes. We learned we had to defend when necessary and push forward.”

After two scoreless 10-minute periods, G-K beat the Hawks, 3-0, in the shootout to pull off the upset.

“It was a huge win for us today, especially with temperatures of 90 degrees,” Lippold said. “It was definitely well played and well worth it.”

Samantha Wendt, Yuliza Fuentes and Citali Serna each scored penalty kicks, while G-K keeper Alahna Siegwarth stopped three Hawks’ PKs with the fourth sailing over the goal.

“She’s very good at reading where the foot placement is and where they strike the ball,” Lippold said. “She knows where she’s going.”

Wendt scored twice in regulation while Adeline Valenti also scored a goal.