Mountain Crest’s Hadli Barrera, left, kicks the ball past RSL Academy goalkeeper Isabelle Smith in overtime on Thursday in Hyrum.

Mountain Crest's Addyson Sofonia (12) heads the ball against RSL Academy on Thursday in Hyrum.

Mountain Crest’s Hadli Barrera, left, kicks the ball past RSL Academy goalkeeper Isabelle Smith in overtime on Thursday in Hyrum.

Mountain Crest's Addyson Sofonia (12) heads the ball against RSL Academy on Thursday in Hyrum.

HYRUM — It was an, at times, frustrating 90-plus minutes in the attack for the Mustangs, but they were persistent and finally got their breakthrough three minutes into second overtime.

And what a breakthrough it was.

A lovely combination play was finished off by Hadli Barrera, propelling Mountain Crest to a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Real Salt Lake Academy in a non-region girls soccer match on a pleasant Thursday evening at Lynn R. Miller Field.

"It feels good," Barrera said. "I mean, they're really good, so it feels nice to beat them. It was a good win for us."

A shootout was looking more and more likely with each passing minute until Faith Newman's one-touch pass found Addyson Sofonia, who played a well-weighted ball to Barrera, who calmly slotted her shot past RSL Academy goalkeeper Isabelle Smith with the outside of her right foot.

"Their defense is really good," MC head coach Justin Beus said of the Griffins, who made it to the semifinals of the 3A state tournament last season. "Their center back was awesome. We just struggled to connect in the final third and we were finally able to do it with a couple of minutes left, so it felt good. We'll take it."

Indeed, it was a difficult backline to break down, although the Mustangs had their chances, especially in the first half. Mountain Crest (4-2) fired off eight shots during the first 40 minutes of action, but only put one of them on frame and it didn't threaten Smith. The Mustangs were possessing well but, quite frankly, their final product was lacking.

The hosts had a golden opportunity to dent the scoreboard in the 18th minute on a nice pass from Barrera to Kaylinn Gallup, but Gallup's 10-or-so-yard strike was deflected by a RSL Academy defender. Only two of Mountain Crest's seven shots in the second half and first overtime period were on target. The Mustangs (4-2) were unable to take advantage of a couple of free kicks in inviting spots.

Arguably Mountain Crest's best chance to score in the second half was courtesy of an accurate Andie Andrus cross that was vollied off the football crossbar. Additionally, a Summer Sofonia shot from distance was spilled by Smith, but the RSL Academy keeper was able to corral the loose ball just before Barrera was able to pounce on it from point-blank range.

"I thought (the goals) were going to come, but they defended us well and we failed to connect well enough in the final third," Beus said. "And it took some patience from us, but we made it happen."

Fortunately for the Mustangs, they were able to keep a solid RSL Academy attack at bay until they found their breakthrough. It was a sound performance by Mountain Crest's starting back four of Summer Sofonia, Bentli Barrera, Rhauli Barrera and Brittney Egbert, who limited the Griffins (3-2) to six shots, including none in the first half. The visitors did come close to scoring early in overtime No. 1.

"Our defense is solid," said Beus of the exact same backline that helped lead the Mustangs to a 4A state championship last fall. "They play solid every game. I'm proud of them, every one of them. They step up and they play hard every game."

Once again, Hailee Sharp and Hadley Glenn split time in goal for the Mustangs, who secured their third shutout of the season. Glenn was very aggressive coming off her line after halftime to thwart a couple of potentially dangerous RSL Academy attacks, and Sharp made a big play early in the first half.

It was a good bounce-back win for Mountain Crest, which was edged by 5A power Bonneville (5-0) by a 3-2 scoreline Tuesday in Washington Terrace. Barrera scored for the Mustangs, as did Gallup, with Barrera's twin sister, Bentli, dishing out both assists.

Simply put, it was a valuable week for Mountain Crest, which blew out its previous two opponents before having to battle it out against Bonneville and RSL Academy.

"It's nice," Hadli Barrera said. "It's going to prepare us for our region season, so I feel like it was good to have those close games."

Mountain Crest was able to prevail Thursday, despite losing starting midfielder Brynleigh Ritchie to a high ankle sprain midway through the second half.

"She's a big asset," Beus said of Ritchie. "Man, she's a hard worker. She was making a difference in that first half. Hopefully we'll get her back soon."

Green Canyon (5-1) jumped out to a 3-0 lead over visiting Spanish Fork and dispatched of the 5A Dons (2-3) by a 3-1 scoreline, while Sky View (3-3) fell on the road against 5A Bountiful, 4-3 in overtime.

Katelyn Jensen scored for the Wolves with four minutes remaining in the first half, assisted by Chloe Chambers. Capriel Winder doubled Green Canyon's lead early in the second half after high pressuring Spanish Fork and stealing the ball at the top of the 18-yard box, GC head coach Kirk Sadler said. Rhyse Cragun provided the exclamation point with what Sadler called "a 25-yard banger of a shot over the keeper's outstretched hands," in the 53rd minute.

"Tonight was a fun game for me as a coach because all of the girls came out to play," Sadler said. "They were aggressive on offense and defense, and I feel like they kept Spanish Fork out of our defensive third most of the game. This is a good momentum boost for us going into region, but we still have a lot of work to do."

Meanwhile, Sky View scored twice after halftime to overcome a 2-1 deficit and force overtime against Bountiful (5-1). Amalia Fonua recorded a brace for the Bobcats, who also got a goal from Karlee Allen. Macy Stickler, Delaney Gibbons and Maysen McKay were each credited with an assist for Sky View, which netted three goals for the fourth straight match.

"We are a team with a ton of fight," SV head coach Stacee Sparrow said. "We are proud of how the girls handled adversity. We will learn from this game, stay positive and move on."

This was the Bobcats' second match of the week as they traveled to Utah County on Tuesday at left with a 3-2 triumph over 5A Salem Hills (4-2). Stickler found the back of the net twice, including the game-winner, and Fonua also scored.

A pair of local teams were in action Thursday evening on the road. Green Canyon improved to 2-0 by sweeping 5A Roy (25-20, 25-20, 25-16), while Logan lost in five sets for the second time in three days. 5A Kearns won the final two sets on its way to edging the Grizzlies (25-8, 21-25, 19-25, 27-25, 15-4).

Alli Anthon led the way offensively with eight kills for the Wolves (2-0), who got 14 digs from Adi Falslev and four blocks from Ryann Vail. Green Canyon setters Kiersten Payne and Elly Giordano teamed up for 23 assists and both served well. Both athletes contributed with four aces for the Wolves, who finished with 12 as a team.

Jason Turner is a sports reporter for The Herald Journal. He can be reached at jturner@hjnews.com or 435-792-7237.

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