Abby Nordland's goal was the difference in a tight district title victory for Jupiter on Monday night.
For the fourth year in a row, Abby Nordland and Jupiter girls soccer are district champions.
The Warriors scored off a header from Nordland in the first half before the home team held off Vero Beach's second-half advances en route to a 1-0 victory.
Winnie Patton unleashed a low driving free kick that met the onrushing head of Nordland, who turned the ball goal-bound in the bottom right corner.
It was the night's only score, though the game also featured a double save by Anna Bellan late in the contest to preserve the Jupiter victory.
Abby Nordland is Jupiter's top defender, secret weapon
Jupiter entered this season seeking answers for a very young and inexperienced rearguard, and head coach Kody Drake found it in a converted midfielder.
Abby Nordland, who scored six goals last year from the middle of the field, has dropped back to play center-back this year, a move that has paid dividends for the Warriors.
The senior has been among the most consistent defenders in the county, and on offense, she's got one of the best headers as well — a secret weapon that ended up being the difference-maker in Monday night's 1-0 victory.
"I know Winnie, who took the cross, she is really consistent with her kicks and I knew it was going to go low and toward the front post, so I knew exactly where my run was going," Nordland said.
On defense, Nordland has taken Jupiter's backline under her wing, Drake says, with the most special aspect of her game being natural leadership.
"She's a leader who leads through example," Drake said. "Whatever she tells her teammates, she'll go on and do it on the field. She shows them. That's not something you can teach, the drive to go out there and to lead by example. That's not a taught skill. That's something she was born with. She's a natural leader that has, almost more than anybody, earned the district championship tonight."
Vero Beach graduating nine seniors who've left legacy
Vero Beach attempted a comeback following Jupiter's first-half goal, but though they were able to get multiple shots on goal in the second half, no late heroics were able to extend the game.
As such, a brutal Class 7A bracket leaves the Indians on the outside looking in as district titles wrap up around Florida, setting the stage for the regional playoffs.
With Monday night's district title loss, Vero Beach is saying goodbye to nine seniors on the squad.
"Very good season, and we fought hard," said head coach Katie Kenward. "It was just an unfortunate end to it. All of our seniors are great example of work ethic, and they're the heart of the team right now. They're great role-models for the girls and it's going to be very hard to go on to next year without them."
Jupiter's fourth-straight title offers glimpse into regional run
Jupiter's run last year went all the way to the state semifinals, but if Jupiter is going to reach the same round of the playoffs — or, in an ideal world, one further — it's going to take some things going the Warriors' way.
Jupiter hasn't been very luck to this point in the season, having lost more players to injury than Drake can remember in any other year he's coached soccer.
The injury bug has bitten Lila Boes, one of Jupiter's top scorers last year, team captain Valentina Vryonides, and midfielder Kailey Jenkins, among a series of additional bumps and bruises, creating some expected moves for the Jupiter roster.
"We've had like Jupiter Medical Center's patients on the field, honestly," Drake said. "It's been a journey for sure, this season."
While that's a challenging thing for any team to overcome, Jupiter's young stars have stepped up.
Goalkeeper Anna Bellan, who is just a sophomore, has drawn high praise from Drake, who says "she's made some of the best saves" that he's seen.
Now what lies ahead, quite frankly, is the unknown.
"The truth is, it's really tough for our entire district to gauge the strength of the three Orlando districts," Drake said. "Because there's such a gap between the east coast schools and Orlando, there's no crossover. The only game that exists is that Vero played Harmony and won 1-0, and that doesn't tell us anything. We have nothing to go off of."
So with regard to whether Jupiter can mount a run akin to last year's trip to DeLand, anything is possible, but time will tell as the Warriors await the state bracket release.
Alex Peterman is a high school sports reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Abby Nordland's goal is difference in district title win over Vero Beach
Category: General Sports
