Dixon beats Winnebago after perfect day of penalty kicks, takes Big Northern Conference lead

DIXON – With the top spot in the Big Northern Conference standings on the line, Dixon was perfect in penalty kicks to pick up a win over Winnebago.

The Dukes made two penalty kicks in regulation, then went 4 for 4 in the PK shootout after the teams played a scoreless overtime in a 3-2 victory Thursday night under the lights at A.C. Bowers Field.

Dixon (7-1-2, 6-1 BNC) took the lead in the league standings thanks to a 4-2 edge in the PK shootout. Jayvian Herwig, who scored both PKs during the game, hit another one in the shootout, while Hayden Yingling, Cooper Fox and Logan Grett also knocked home their PKs.

[ Photo of Dixon vs. Winnebago boys soccer ]

“I’m just so confident in PKs right now. I mean, I scored three today,” Herwig said. “The first one, I knew where I wanted to go: to my left, his right, because I felt he was more confident to his left, just by looking at him. The next one, I could see him leaning more to his right where I shot it before, so I just went to my right, his left. The last one, I hit it hard on the ground, got it past him to his right again.

“We were all feeling it tonight in PKs.”

Ethan Bond replaced Deaglan Taylor in goal for the Dukes for the shootout,and saved the third Winnebago penalty kick. After Grett’s goal made it 4-2 in the shootout, the final PK for the Indians hit the crossbar in the upper righthand corner and bounced away to seal the Dixon victory.

“Deaglan did great. Their two goals, he just couldn’t do anything about them, and he saved everything else. He was really on in regulation, and I’m happy I could get it done in PKs,” Bond said. “I was kind of surprised at first, because Deaglan had been doing so good in there. When the coaches told me to get gloved up and warmed up because I was going in, I went blank for second because it was a shock.”

Winnebago (6-4-2, 4-2 BNC) scored a pair of equalizers shortly after each Dixon goal, and the game was an even battle throughout.

The Dukes took the lead when Herwig converted after Jack Redell was fouled in the box less than seven minutes into the game. Herwig kicked it to the left of Winnebago keeper Noah Melin.

Winnebago’s Blaise Brown tied the game four minutes later, deflecting a shot by teammate Brandon Armenta along the back line to the left of the goal past Taylor.

Herwig connected on his second PK after Bond was fouled in the box with 5:37 left before halftime. This time, Herwig went to his right with the shot and found the net.

Less than three minutes into the second half, Armenta tied it at 2 by converting on a corner kick, knocking in a top-shelf header over the hands of a leaping Taylor.

The teams went back and forth for the next 37 minutes, with each team missing a golden opportunity to take the lead. Dixon had a shot hit the post midway through the half, while Winnebago had a shot hit the crossbar with about 12 minutes to play.

Each team had one shot on goal through the two 5-minute overtime periods, with Dixon controlling possession in the first five minutes and Winnebago controlling the ball in the second five minutes.

“I thought our guys gave 90 minutes of full effort, and I couldn’t have asked for more. They gave me everything they had, and they came off the field having nothing left to give,” Winnebago coach Derek Melin said. “I felt like we played as a team, we played with a lot of confidence and we executed our plan. I feel like the things that we could affect, we affected, and it ended the way it ended.”

The Indians won the coin toss before the PK shootout and elected to shoot second. Yingling scored in the lower left corner on his shot, then Bago’s Daniel Guzman matched it into the upper left corner. Herwig gave Dixon the 2-1 lead with a shot to the left side, then Adam Weber went to the same spot as Guzman to tie it again.

“I think it was definitely good for us to take the first shot, because it allowed us to put the pressure on them right away,” Bond said. “We kept making our shots, and I realized if I were to save one – like I did – they’d have to make every other one they took or have their goalie save one too.”

Fox went to the upper left corner, then Bond made his save on Brown’s PK. Winnebago goalkeeper Melin got his hands on Grett’s shot to the left side, but the ball squeezed through. Then Armenta tried to go into the upper right corner with his PK, but it hit the spot where the goalpost meets the crossbar and bounced away.

“It’s basically just trying to get big, and then you can’t think about it much,” Bond said of his mindset in the shootout. “You’ve just got to pick a side to dive on, and I chose right on that one. That’s all that was really going through my head, not much else.”

Taylor made seven saves on 14 Winnebago shots (nine on goal), while Melin had 10 saves on 19 Dixon shots (12 on frame). The two teams were split pretty evenly in time of possession.

The Dukes are now the lone team in the BNC with only one loss, and they can clinch the conference title with a win or tie against Byron next Wednesday.

“This puts us ahead in conference, and that’s pretty huge for us,” Herwig said. “Everybody played well for us tonight, especially in goal. Deaglan showed up today, which we’re very happy about. He’s come back after struggling with injuries to start the year, and he and Ethan were swapping for a while. Today Deaglan stepped up for us in a big game and Ethan finished it off.”