Rhoades, with torn ACL, preserves Vermilion-Perkins draw

VERMILION — The knee brace gives it away, but Abi Rhoades' goalkeeping ability doesn't suggest anything is amiss. Rhoades tore her left ACL in June at basketball camp. The senior wasn't going to miss her final soccer season, though. "She's a good kid," Vermilion first-year coach Matt DeCapua said. "She's very poised… She's listening well, and I'm really proud of her." Rhoades was the difference in an SBC opener on Thursday night between Vermilion and Perkins that ended in a 1-1 draw. Rhoades made 10 saves, a number of them extremely high-level, for the Sailors (2-1-1, 0-0-1 SBC). "It definitely felt very smooth and very natural today," Rhodes said. Perkins (1-2-1) controlled possession and created more chances but had to head home without a win because of Rhoades. "She made some unbelievable saves," Perkins coach Scott McVeigh said. "... She was really good tonight." Rhoades totaled six of her saves in the first half, keeping the game scoreless to the intermission. Her best came on a close-range effort from Maggie McVeigh that was ticketed for the bottom left corner. But Rhoades dove full extension to her right to keep the ball out, then as the rebound cycled around, quickly hopped up to snag a long-distance rocket from McKaylah Hartley. "Abi was amazing," senior Livia Penton said. "She was definitely player of the game. She played so, so well." Rhoades' effort set up Penton, one of the best players in Vermilion history, for a moment of absolute wonder. About 17 minutes into the second half, Penton drove down the right side of the field with two Perkins defenders shadowing her. There was no space to the middle, so Penton kept dribbling and figured she'd have a go. The ensuing right-footed missile flew into the far corner from a spot along the right side of the 18-yard box. "Honestly, I don't even know, it was all adrenaline really," Penton said. "I can't really explain it. I didn't expect it to go in." The angle would've been impossible for most, but not Penton. "She's just a player who can do that," McVeigh said. "When the ball is at her feet, wherever she's at, she can put it in the back of the net… What do you do? You tip your hat to her." Penton now has 76 career goals, tied with Katelyn Peterson for most in Sailors history. She'll get her first chance to stand alone when Vermilion plays at Fairview on Saturday. "She's humble and a great kid," DeCapua said. "She's a special type of person, and a special type of player." Perkins didn't allow that goal to crush it, though, and two and a half minutes later, Caitlin Frankfather sent Maggie McVeigh behind the defense for a tap-in that even Rhoades wasn't stopping on this night. "A week ago, we hang our heads and Vermilion probably scores again," McVeigh said. "The girls said, 'Keep your heads up, next play, we're fine.'" The final 20 minutes were frenetic, with neither team wanting a draw to open league play. Penton had the best individual chance, putting together a darting solo run before dragging an open shot just wide left. And because this night was just as much about Rhoades as anyone, of course she had a final denial. Jordyn Brunner dribbled into the box and lofted a shot that would've gone over the head of most goalkeepers. Not Rhoades. Somehow, bulky knee brace and torn knee ligament and all, she rose up and tipped the ball over the bar. "It's an amazing feeling," Rhoades said. "One of the best feelings is to stop it, and then after, it feels so good." Rhoades went on to make a great catch on the ensuing corner, and the draw would have to do. "We had plenty of opportunities," McVeigh said. "Matt's done a really good job with them. Just from last year at this time to this year at this time, they are so much more disciplined, it's unbelievable. We didn't win. We didn't lose. We got better tonight."