Tooele made things exciting to start the second half, but the Grantsville Cowboys scored four straight goals and held on for a 6-4 victory.
Trailing 2-0, the Buffaloes struck quick after the halftime break. Tooele’s Mitchell Van Wagoner was fouled in the goal box to set up a penalty kick. Jackson Drake attempted the free kick and blasted it into the net on the left side to make the score 2-1. Just moments later, Antonio Taddia attempted a kick from about 25 yards away from the net. The ball sailed and landed top shelf on the left side to tie the game at 2.
It was then Grantsville’s turn to get into gear with its scoring.
Jesse Lynn got the tides turned. His bending shot that clanked off the cross-bar may have been a miss, but the offense found its rhythm. Benton Tripp capitalized on the Grantsville momentum by dribbling through the Tooele defense. After working his way through the defenders, he blasted home a shot to make the score 3-2 in favor of the Cowboys.
Lynn then created offense with a pass over to Gavin Holt, who took a shot that was initially saved. However, the ball came loose, and Holt put back another shot that scored, giving Grantsville a 4-2 lead. This was the first of a hat trick performance for Holt.
Andy Harrell got involved with the passing when he had the ball down near the out-of-bounds line. He crossed the ball from the line over to Holt, who scored hist second goal to make the score 5-2.
Holt scored his final goal on a breakaway chance. He popped the ball up and over the closing goalkeeper and scored to make it 6-2.
Tooele didn’t go away without fight. With a scrum down near the goal, Tooele’s Nathan Fisk powered it home from close range to make the score 6-3.
Fisk then scored again on a header. The ball bounced off the left post and into the net to make the score 6-4. The referee then blew the whistle to signal the end the game.
Tooele’s next game is on the road Friday at Bear River. Grantsville next plays on the road at Stansbury.