Mount Vernon scored with 30 seconds left to sneak by the Oak Harbor High School soccer team 2-1 Tuesday, March 15, at Wildcat Memorial Stadium.

Guadalupe Sandoval slipped a shot through for the game winner, finally finding a hole in a Wildcat defense that stymied the Bulldogs most of the night.

Oak Harbor controlled the action early but missed on several opportunities until J.J. Mitchell drilled a 20-yarder straight down the middle to get the Wildcats on the board with 21:30 left in the first half.

It took Mount Vernon less than a minute to tie the match.

From that point, the Bulldogs took control but were repeatedly turned back by the Wildcat defense and goalkeeper Jared Hoyt.

The defensive play of the game came with 10 seconds remaining in the half. Hoyt blocked a shot off a corner kick, then Mitchell recorded a save when the Bulldogs fired again off the rebound.

Oak Harbor coach Brian Thompson was pleased with how his young team played, especially on defense, which they emphasized in practice heading into the match.

“I’m really happy of what these boys have done,” Thompson said. “We played really well in a high-pressure game. Mount Vernon beat us last year (4-0), and we played them even until the end.”

Oak Harbor (0-1-1) plays at Mariner (0-0-1) at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 18.

(Oak Harbor’s Andrew Franssen, left, keeps the ball away from Mount Vernon’s Parker VanDriel. Photo by John Fisken.)