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BRIGHTON — The girls soccer rivalry between Brighton and Hartland is one of the best in any sport in Livingston County, with the winner of the teams’ postseason matchup often winning a district championship.
Usually they see each other twice during the regular season, but Tuesday’s game at Sloan Field could be their only meeting this year. The KLAA changed its soccer schedule so teams play division opponents only once instead of twice and the Eagles and Bulldogs aren’t in the same district this spring.
If they meet again, it would be in the regional championship game June 5, 6 or 7 in Grand Blanc.
The matchup was as intense as ever, with the game being scoreless through one half before Hartland scored three straight goals to come away with a 3-1 victory.
Here are some takeaways from Tuesday’s game:
RELATED:Monday's top performers: Pinckney pitching ace also wields hot bat, hits walk-off grand slam
Sophomore Gracie Kastamo, the third Kastamo sister to play for Hartland, scored the Eagles’ second and third goals.
She knocked in a rebound with 36:09 left in the game and put a long looping shot just under the crossbar with 22:45 remaining.
Kastamo, who has six goals and one assist in nine games, watched both her sisters help Hartland win a state championship in 2021. Hannah Kastamo was the county’s Player of the Year in 2022 and Emma was a third-team all-stater last season. Both play for Northern Michigan University.
“They obviously are a big inspiration showing how fun it can be,” Gracie said.
Hartland coach Andrew Kartsounes said the three sisters played different roles. Emma was a center back on the state championship team before moving to a defensive center midfield role. Hannah was a forward and offensive center midfielder. Gracie started the year in the midfield before moving to outside forward, a move that will likely stick.
“She’s following the same trajectory and is going to be a big player for us the next three years,” Kartsounes said.
Hartland didn’t have many scoring chances in the first half, but struck quickly in the second half when junior Paige Sundman knocked in a rebound 2 minutes and 33 seconds into the half.
“I was excited, because as soon as we scored we had it,” Sundman said. “We tried to keep going, keep pressing. Then Gracie scored twice right after that.”
It was the second goal of the season for Sundman, who had 10 goals and three assists last year.
“I had a lot more goals last season, but I’ve been creating a bit more and finding my spot on this team,” Sundman said.
Brighton goalie Anna Brown-Nall was shaken up after making a save in the final minute of the first half, but that wasn’t why she didn’t return in the second half.
The Bulldogs have been sharing the net all season, with Brown-Nall playing one half and junior newcomer Macy Martin playing the other. It’s a season-long audition to see which player takes over the net for the playoffs.
“We’re trying to figure out how we play at the end of the season, so every game they both play meaningful minutes,” Brighton coach Mark Carriere said. “It’s great to have two keepers we trust and respect.”
Brighton dominated play for most of the first half, getting six corner kicks in the first 23 minutes and putting some tough shots on Hartland goalie Jenna Brock.
But when the first 40 minutes were complete, the game was still scoreless.
“We had a lot of possession in the attacking third,” Carriere said. “You want to get that goal, because as we all saw momentum is a crazy thing in this game. We really needed to capitalize on one of those opportunities in the first half to seize momentum, because once they got it, it was really hard to take it back.”
The Bulldogs were down 3-0 before they got their only goal on a shot by freshman Kyla Bobby with 13:35 left in the game.
The loss was the first in KLAA play for Brighton, which is 4-1 in the division and 8-2 overall. Hartland is 4-1 in the division, 6-3 overall.
Northville suffered the first blemish on its division record with a 0-0 tie Tuesday against Salem. The Mustangs are 3-0-1 in the West.
Brighton travels to Salem Thursday before hosting Northville in the division finale next Tuesday. Hartland’s remaining division games are against Novi Thursday at home and Monday at Plymouth.
Contact Bill Khan at [email protected]. Follow him on X @BillKhan
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Key takeaways from Brighton-Hartland girls soccer rivalry game
Continue reading...
Usually they see each other twice during the regular season, but Tuesday’s game at Sloan Field could be their only meeting this year. The KLAA changed its soccer schedule so teams play division opponents only once instead of twice and the Eagles and Bulldogs aren’t in the same district this spring.
If they meet again, it would be in the regional championship game June 5, 6 or 7 in Grand Blanc.
The matchup was as intense as ever, with the game being scoreless through one half before Hartland scored three straight goals to come away with a 3-1 victory.
Here are some takeaways from Tuesday’s game:
RELATED:Monday's top performers: Pinckney pitching ace also wields hot bat, hits walk-off grand slam
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Sister act III
Sophomore Gracie Kastamo, the third Kastamo sister to play for Hartland, scored the Eagles’ second and third goals.
She knocked in a rebound with 36:09 left in the game and put a long looping shot just under the crossbar with 22:45 remaining.
Kastamo, who has six goals and one assist in nine games, watched both her sisters help Hartland win a state championship in 2021. Hannah Kastamo was the county’s Player of the Year in 2022 and Emma was a third-team all-stater last season. Both play for Northern Michigan University.
“They obviously are a big inspiration showing how fun it can be,” Gracie said.
Hartland coach Andrew Kartsounes said the three sisters played different roles. Emma was a center back on the state championship team before moving to a defensive center midfield role. Hannah was a forward and offensive center midfielder. Gracie started the year in the midfield before moving to outside forward, a move that will likely stick.
“She’s following the same trajectory and is going to be a big player for us the next three years,” Kartsounes said.
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Breaking the deadlock
Hartland didn’t have many scoring chances in the first half, but struck quickly in the second half when junior Paige Sundman knocked in a rebound 2 minutes and 33 seconds into the half.
“I was excited, because as soon as we scored we had it,” Sundman said. “We tried to keep going, keep pressing. Then Gracie scored twice right after that.”
It was the second goal of the season for Sundman, who had 10 goals and three assists last year.
“I had a lot more goals last season, but I’ve been creating a bit more and finding my spot on this team,” Sundman said.
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Rotating goalkeepers
Brighton goalie Anna Brown-Nall was shaken up after making a save in the final minute of the first half, but that wasn’t why she didn’t return in the second half.
The Bulldogs have been sharing the net all season, with Brown-Nall playing one half and junior newcomer Macy Martin playing the other. It’s a season-long audition to see which player takes over the net for the playoffs.
“We’re trying to figure out how we play at the end of the season, so every game they both play meaningful minutes,” Brighton coach Mark Carriere said. “It’s great to have two keepers we trust and respect.”
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Lost opportunity
Brighton dominated play for most of the first half, getting six corner kicks in the first 23 minutes and putting some tough shots on Hartland goalie Jenna Brock.
But when the first 40 minutes were complete, the game was still scoreless.
“We had a lot of possession in the attacking third,” Carriere said. “You want to get that goal, because as we all saw momentum is a crazy thing in this game. We really needed to capitalize on one of those opportunities in the first half to seize momentum, because once they got it, it was really hard to take it back.”
The Bulldogs were down 3-0 before they got their only goal on a shot by freshman Kyla Bobby with 13:35 left in the game.
You must be registered for see images attach
KLAA West implications
The loss was the first in KLAA play for Brighton, which is 4-1 in the division and 8-2 overall. Hartland is 4-1 in the division, 6-3 overall.
Northville suffered the first blemish on its division record with a 0-0 tie Tuesday against Salem. The Mustangs are 3-0-1 in the West.
Brighton travels to Salem Thursday before hosting Northville in the division finale next Tuesday. Hartland’s remaining division games are against Novi Thursday at home and Monday at Plymouth.
Contact Bill Khan at [email protected]. Follow him on X @BillKhan
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Key takeaways from Brighton-Hartland girls soccer rivalry game
Continue reading...
