Monashee Surveyors looked to increase their lead atop the North Okanagan Soccer League standings Sunday evening.
Second-place North Enderby Timber had other ideas.
Brent Poulsen’s goal in the 85th minute lifted NET to a 3-2 win over Monashee in a first-place showdown at Marshall Field.
The victory propelled Timber to within two points of the Surveyors with a game in hand.
Poulsen’s second goal of the night came after Oben Tabe controlled the ball in the midfield, then sent Evan Frederick on a run down the right wing. The fast-flying Frederick used his speed to beat a defender and send a cross into Poulsen, who hammered it home on a one-touch from the penalty spot.
Monashee took the lead at 20 minutes on their first shot of the game. A miscommunication on the NET backline led to a Nick Croken breakaway, and he slid it past Timber keeper Ryan Posnikoff.
NET kept pressing and were rewarded in the 43rd minute when Tabe sent Poulsen in on a partial break. Poulsen deked out a defender and lured the Surveyor keeper before dishing the ball to Frederick, who calmly deposited the ball into the empty net.
Five minutes after the re-start, Monashee regained the lead on a partial break when Chad Bennett fired a shot that went through the arms of a diving Posnikoff.
The keeper made up for things a few minutes later, making a game-saving sliding save off the goal line to deny Alberto Lopez a key Monashee marker.
NET levelled the match minutes later when Poulsen collided with the charging keeper, having been sprung on a breakaway by Lucas Ross. The ball rebounded to Brodie Couch, who hit a seeing-eye single through two diving Monashee defenders into the goal.
Bryan Schenker scored twice and set up the other three goals as the Turn-Key Ogopogos cruised to a 5-0 win over city rivals Okanagan Spring Camels in a Capri Insurance Men’s 45+ Soccer League make-up game Monday at Marshall Field.
Schenker and the ‘Pogos could have had more if not for the play of Camels keeper Ron Krause.
Mark Wasylyk added a pair and Jeff Nice scored while playing with a bad calf injury.
Ogopogo defenders Steve Fitzpatrick, Steve Coombs, Brad Conlin, energy bunny Rick Danyluk and Mike Adams held the Camels attack at bay.
Ian Bos had one of his best games for Turn-Key.
