Dallas Moves Into 1st

Hoban grabs early lead, but Mountaineers rally to hand Argents first loss of season.

Alyssa Urbanski of Bishop Hoban heads the ball as teammate Alyssa Mocion and Dallas’ Ellen Arnaud wait to see where the ball goes during Monday’s game in Lehman Township.

Melissa Gorski, center, celebrates her goal with Dallas teammates Kiley Williams, left, and Sammi Elston during Monday’s game against Bishop Hoban.

TIMES LEADER staff PHOTOs/PETE G. WILCOX

LEHMAN TWP. – Opinions differed about the first five minutes Monday night.
Dallas keeper Jill Spring saw the one-goal deficit one way.
“That was pretty deflating,” Spring said.
Forward Melissa Gorski saw it another.
“We knew we would come back,” Gorski said, “because we felt we wanted the game more than them.”
In a sense, both were right as Dallas scored four times in the second half for a 4-2 victory over Bishop Hoban in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division A girls soccer game.
Dallas (8-0-2) took over first place from Hoban (8-1). The Mountaineers were the last team to defeat Hoban, winning 3-0 in the District 2 semifinals last year.
“We don’t panic,” said midfielder Kiley Williams, who was instrumental in both victories. She assisted Dallas’ third goal and scored its fourth. She had two goals in last year’s district game.
Hoban took a 1-0 lead when Kim Suchoski scored off a Mary Kate Lambert assist in the fifth minute. The lead lasted throughout the first half.
“We were OK,” Dallas coach Chris Scharff said. “The girl was a little nervous who was marking Suchoski. ... But we settled down and everything was good.”
In fact, it became much better than expected as the Mountaineers shredded the center of Hoban’s defense for three goals.
Sammi Elston scored Dallas’ first goal three minutes into the second half, angling away from two defenders slightly on her run before lining a shot into the upper right corner. Gorski followed eight minutes later, dribbling right down the middle and beating two defenders on a breakaway.
“When we go down 1-0, we usually lose our heads,” Gorski said. “But we wanted to keep it together.”
Dallas needed to since Hoban tied the score 2-2 three minutes later. Natalie Adams lined a pass through the penalty area and Caryinna Yenchak one-timed the ball past Spring, who had no chance to stop the shot.
Williams, an all-state selection last year, then helped give Dallas the lead for good. She passed to Ellen Arnaud, who raced through the defense to score in the 62nd minute.
“I didn’t think they could handle our speed at that time,” Scharff said. “I think we worked harder than them in the second half, plain and simple.”
Williams finished off the victory with a liner from about 22 yards out with 12 minutes left.
The teams will play again next Monday at Hoban, and there is a likelihood Dallas would clinch the Division A title with a win. The remaining teams in the division have at least three losses.
“Last year, we didn’t get the league championship,” Gorski said. “That’s what we want to get this year.”