MEDINA, Ohio -- Rocky River remained unbeaten, but two late goals by the host Buckeye Bucks cost the Pirates a victory in Wednesday night Great Lakes Conference action at Buckeye High School. The DII fourth-ranked (Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches) Pirates scored the game's lone first-half goal and then doubled their lead 10 minutes into the second. But the Bucks battled back with two unanswered netfinders to close out an eventual 2-2 tie.

Rocky River (3-0-2, 1-0-1 GLC) made its way through seven straight halves of scoreless soccer before yielding the two Buckeye goals on Wednesday. The Maroon & White hadn't been scored on since their Aug. 24 season opener.

On Wednesday, the Pirates got on the board first when Ava Patti scored her third goal of the season. In the 37th minute of the match, Patti was the beneficiary of a sister-sister give-and-go, taking a pass from Maya Patti and converting from the point, just outsde the box. River took that goal into halftime, leading 1-0.

In the 50th minute, some fine playmaking by Keira Vesy and Sophia Murray set up Addie Harris for a goal. Murray was tagged with an assist and Rocky River found itself up, 2-0, and outshooting the Bucks by a 2-to-1 margin. Harris' goal -- her second this season and the 11th of her career -- came on River's 13th shot of the evening. The Pirates would loose just three more attempts the rest of the way.

Buckeye scored in the 56th minute. A 2-1 Pirate lead would make its way to the 77th minute, with both defenses holding sway in a tight, physical match.

In that 77th minute, the Bucks scored off what marked just their second corner of the night. The Buckeye goal sealed a two-goal rally, and it capped off the scoring in a 2-2 GLC match.

For the game, Rocky River outshot Buckeye, 16-7.


CANNON FIRE ...

RIVER RUN: Despite the Bucks' late life in Wednesday's contest in Medina, Rocky River is still unbeaten (8-0-2) over its last 10 GLC matches. The Pirates are the two-time defending league champions.

MY, OH MY: With her assist in Wednesday's game, senior Maya Patti has now registered seven points (two goals, three assists) in 2020 and 96 points (38, 20) in her career. The career point total ties Patti with McKenna Klodnick (2010-13) for eighth place on River's all-time points list. Klodnick went on to play collegiate soccer at Marshall University. ... Patti -- a fourth-year letterwinner -- tallied 14 goals and seven assists in earning a First Team All-GLC nod in 2019.


by Skip Snow