Of the 22 players who started the first of two Class 4A girls soccer state semifinals at Richard Montgomery High Saturday, just three were seniors. Yet it was a pair of playoff veterans who finally nailed down Quince Orchard's 1-0 (7-6 penalty kicks) win over Thomas Johnson.
After the teams combined to convert the first 12 PKs, Cougars senior Amanda Whitney finally made a diving save on the Patriots' seventh attempt. Junior Ele Margelos stepped up next and fired the defending state champions back into the final.
"I was freaking out. I was shaking. I was about to throw up," Margelos said. "[The Patriots] did a great job with their PKs, and so did we. And it came down to me, which is just freaky."
Chris Rossi/The Gazette
Quince Orchard's Kayla Clark (facing camera) gets a big hug from teammate Emily D'Italia after the Cougars survived a 14-kick penalty shootout against Thomas Johnson in the Class 4A state semifinals Saturday at Richard Montgomery.
Quince Orchard (14-2 record, 4A West Region champion) advances to its third-straight state championship game riding a 10-game winning streak. The Cougars will face Leonardtown, the team that beat them in the 2006 state final, later this week at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County in Catonsville.
Seven starters returned from the title-winning team, including Whitney and Margelos. But with seniors Heather Amato and Sarah Crim out with season-ending injuries, coach Peg Keiller started eight juniors and a sophomore alongside Whitney and defensive midfielder Lane Kurkjian.
"We had some new players who fit right in," said Keiller, who also won a state championship in 2002. "We've kind of cultivated an attitude for hard work and a desire for success. When players come into the program, they know what's expected of them."
Mitch Rubin's Thomas Johnson program, on the other hand, is just getting under way. After seven seasons as coach of the boys program, including a share of the 2006 state title, Rubin led the girls to a record of 16-5-1 and the 4A North Region title in his first season.
The Patriots' youth is more by design than the Cougars; goalie Sarah Thompson was their only senior starter Saturday. She was one of only two members of the Class of 2009 on the entire roster, compared to six in each of the other three classes.
"When we got together at the beginning of the season, we talked about winning conference, region and state titles," Rubin said. "Yes, it's exciting that so many of these players are coming back. But is that a guarantee we'll be in this situation again? Absolutely not."
Both teams created chances during a fast-paced second half and two 10-minute overtime periods. Thomas Johnson's Becca Hemby actually bulged the net in the 4th minute of the first overtime, but the offside flag was raised, wiping the goal off the board.
While neither team lit the scoreboard after 100 minutes, goals came fast and furious during the shootout. Hemby, Monica Omelchenko, Sara Franciscovich, Natalie Dold, Erin Jeanneret and Anne Powell converted in succession for Thomas Johnson. Yvonne Latour, Kayla Clark, Kurkjian, Leah Prentice, Emily D'Italia and Jessica Row matched them each time for Quince Orchard.
It came down to Whitney, who leapt to her left to catch the Patriots' final, chest-high penalty. Whitney has seen penalty kicks before; she was in goal when the Cougars won the '07 state title in PKs.
"You just have to pick a side and go with it," Whitney said. "I think that experience definitely helped; we know what we need to do. ... We wanted to be here again. We always thought we were capable of it."
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