Girls soccer: Mariah Hobson scores 5 goals to power Princeton past IVC

Mariah Hobson and Princeton picked up right where they left off last season – scoring goals and winning.

Hobson scored five goals, including her 100th career goal, to lift the defending regional champion Tigresses to a 7-0 win over IVC in their season opener Monday at Bryant Field.

“I was a little nervous and a little rusty on the first few shots, but I got right back into it. It’s like part of nature for me,” Hobson said.

She said it’s not as easy as she made it look scoring five goals.

“It is a lot of work. This team helps me get there. I wouldn’t have got there without their passing,” she said. “Honestly, it’ a team effort, and I’m just glad to be a part of it.”

Hobson’s final goal of the night was a thing of beauty, a rainbow, arcing shot over the IVC keeper’s head that found the top of the net.

She even surprised herself.

“It was a nice goal to end on. I actually thought it was out until I heard my teammates screaming at me. I was like, ‘Wait, it went in?’ ” she said. “Honestly, it’s kind of hard to do that. Normally, that’s more like Nora [Schneider]. Nora can hit those shots. But it was pretty nice to get a taste of that.”

“It was a nice goal to end on. I actually thought it was out until I heard my teammates screaming at me. I was like, ‘Wait, it went in?’”

—  Mariah Hobson

Hobson said she was trying for the loft shot, but “didn’t think it was going to work. I was just going for it.”

Hobson now is only six goals from catching former scoring champ Jasmine Kunkel’s career school record with 106.

“Obviously, she’s an outstanding goal scorer,” PHS coach David Gray said.

With all the attention on Hobson, Gray was quick to point out the key defensive contributions of sophomore Devin Dever. She switched up from her normal, desired spot at wing to plug a hole at center midfielder, which calmed the PHS defense.

“She felt like she needed to plug the hole on defense,” Gray said. “She was kind of drifting that way. We switched her to that holding, center spot and made a difference in the game. She played it really, really well. Sometimes solutions come on their own.”

For her efforts, Dever was selected by the team captains to choose where the team dinner would be after the game. She chose Culver’s.

Sophomore keeper Maddie Oertel backed the defense by pitching a shutout on goal.

Freshman Chloe Ostrowski got the Tigresses on the board with the first goal of the game.

Hobson scored three to make it 4-0 at the half.

Hobson opened the second half less than a minute into play with her fourth goal.

Sophomore Olivia Mattingly followed with a goal on a penalty kick shortly after to make it 6-0.

Hobson added goal No. 5 to complete the scoring.

After having their first two games canceled by the weather, Hobson said it was a good win for all the young players getting their first taste of varsity soccer.

“For the new people, I’m glad we got a win like this under our belt, shook away some of the jitters that those girls had,” she said. “It will give them more confidence, and that’s what they need. They’re going to be strong players this year and years to come.”

Tiger tales: Princeton plays Rock Island Alleman, a defending sectional champion, in a key nonconference match at 11 a.m. Saturday at Bryant Field.

“We’re going to find out a lot about ourselves Saturday. They’re going to be pretty tough,” Gray said.

The Pioneers beat Rockford Christian, which knocked out Princeton 2-1 on PKs in the semifinals, for the sectional championship at Hinckley last spring.