GODFREY – The streak is over.
The Alton Redbirds snapped an eight-match winless streak to the Granite City Warriors after winning 2-1 on Saturday at Piasa Motor Fuels Field.
Alton defeated Granite City for the first time in seven years. The Redbirds' last win over the Warriors was on May 18, 2010, when they won 1-0 in the Class 3A Granite City Regional semifinals.
The Redbirds were 0-7-1 against the Warriors in the last eight meetings before Saturday. The two teams finished in a scoreless tie last year at Granite City.
AHS improved to 10-4-2 overall and 3-2 in Southwestern Conference play with two matches remaining, both are at home. The Redbirds play Sacred Heart-Griffin on Monday and Belleville West on Thursday.
GCHS dropped to 12-5 overall and wrapped up its conference season at 2-4. The Warriors end their regular season on Thursday with a home match against Glenwood.
The two teams will square off again at 6 p.m. May 17 in a Class 3A Quincy Regional semifinal match at Gene Baker Field in Granite City. The winner travels to Quincy to play either Collinsville or Quincy in the championship match at 6 p.m. May 19 at Quincy.
Granite City is the fourth seed and Alton is seeded fifth.
The Redbirds got goals from Brianna Hatfield and Katie Kercher, making it the first time since 2011 Alton scored against Granite City.
Hatfield gave Alton a 1-0 lead with a goal with 13:06 left in the first half. GCHS goalkeeper Viktoria Johnson was attempting to make a save from an Alton shot, but the ball slipped out of her hands and Hatfield recovered the loose ball and scored her 19th goal of the season.
With a minute into the second half, Johnson stopped a shot from a Alton player before Kercher scored off the deflection to give the Redbirds a 2-0 lead. It was her ninth goal of the season.
Lexi Grote scored the Warriors' only goal with 12:57 left in the match, when she scored on a penalty kick. She now has a team-high 11 goals, surpassing last year's mark of 10.
Also on Saturday, the Warriors and Redbirds honored former Granite City soccer player Sam Keomanivane by wearing bright colored T-shirts with "Keo Strong" written in the back. Keomanivane, who graduated from GCHS in 2006, was recently injured in a motorcycle accident.
Both teams were taking donations to cover medical expenses during the match. The Warriors raised $500 several days ago.
