Athletes are taught to never give up, and that adage proved true for the soccer Bravettes in the opening round of the District Tournament last night! They rose from the brink of elimination to win a thrilling 2-1 overtime victory against the Lady Trojans of Webster County and advance to the championship game!
Going into the contest, both teams knew it would be competitive, as their two previous meetings this year ended in narrow Webster County victories in PK shootouts after double overtime. Monday night’s match lived up to the expectation, as the two evenly-matched teams battled each other to a scoreless tie in the first half. Though Union County dominated the time of possession, they could not find a way to score against Webster’s solid defense.
The second half continued much the same until the Webster County offense broke through to score a goal with about 12 minutes left in the contest to put the Lady Trojans ahead 1-0. Though the Bravettes kept battling, the score remained the same even with only one minute left in the game. Then, with time and hope dwindling, Union got a chance to score when Webster was called for a penalty with 57 seconds left in regulation. Emily Payne took took the penalty kick and made good on the opportunity, sending a perfectly-placed ball into the right corner of the net to score the game-tying goal!
The 80 minutes of regulation ended with the score tied 1-1, so the two teams faced off for their third consecutive overtime matchup of the year. However, this time, the Bravettes didn’t let the match get to a shootout. With 3:51 left in overtime, Annie Beaven sent a corner kick to Rylie Johnson who kicked a shot over the goalkeeper’s reach and into the net. The goal won the match, and the Bravettes celebrated their dramatic victory with jumps, hugs, high fives, and lots of smiles!
The win not only sends the Bravettes to the District Championship game, but it also qualifies them for the Regional Tournament since the two top teams at Districts earn a spot at Regionals. This will be the Bravettes second consecutive trip to Regionals after a 6-year drought prior to last season.
Bravettes head coach Peter Nikolai praised his team for their effort and refusal to quit, “The team didn’t give up! They hustled and won at least 160 more minutes of soccer for the seniors on the team,” he highlighted. “Right at the end, it would have been so easy for them to say, ‘Here we go again,’ and they didn’t. I'm just super proud of them and happy for them, especially for the seniors.”
The Bravettes now take on the Henderson County Lady Colonels in the District Championship tonight at 5:30 at Henderson County High School. Go Bravettes!
