High School Lacrosse
POSTSEASON
May 14, 2007
Decker's sudden-death goal kills talk of rematch
By
NATHAN CHAMBERS
BeyondTheDerby.com
Call it the shot heard 'round the KLA.
Collegiate senior Annie Decker scored 10 seconds into the sudden-death third overtime period in the Kentucky Lacrosse Association High School Girls' Division 1 semifinals at the University of Louisville on Monday night, delivering the Amazons a 10-9 victory over three-time defending champion and top seed Manual.
Fourth-seeded Collegiate put to rest all the hype about a rematch between Manual and Kentucky Country Day - the teams that many people thought were destined to meet in the final for the second year in a row, particularly after battling to an 8-8 tie on May 1.
"Nobody else has been considered," Collegiate assistant coach Jeff Clark said. "But I thought we were contenders all along."
The Amazons, who lost 12-8 to KCD in the schools’ Derby Cup on April 28, will get another shot at the second-seeded Bearcats in the final at U of L on Thursday. KCD beat third-seeded Mercy 19-7 in the other semifinal.
"If we play the way we played tonight, we can be very competitive," Collegiate head coach Susan Harrison said. "I’ve always felt that we were very even with them, and I welcome the challenge of meeting them again."
Collegiate-Manual
The Amazons blew a lead in their regular-season game against Manual on March 20 and lost 9-7. They nearly did that again on Monday, letting a 7-4 lead slip away in the second half. The Crimsons tied it at 8-8 in the final two minutes to force overtime.
"We dominated through most of the first half and part of the second half," Harrison said. "But Manual’s so powerful and can come back. Sure enough, they came back."
The teams played two three-minute overtime periods; Collegiate scored in the first, and Manual answered with a goal in the second. That took them to a sudden-death period, when Decker won the opening draw, sped down the field and scored on Manual senior goalie Annie Makela (17 saves).
"We didn’t have an answer for her coming down the middle of the field in the last game, and we talked about that," Manual head coach Steve Auden said. "We worked on it, and we tried to concentrate on it. But we couldn’t find an answer to it."
Decker was one of the four Collegiate players - including senior Devon Byrne, freshman Taylor Hodge, and eighth-grader Danielle Bosscher - that scored two goals. Hodge and Bosscher also each had two assists. Senior Emily Vieth had a goal and an assist, and senior Allison Grant scored a goal. Junior goalie Liz Ratliff made 14 saves.
Senior Samantha Canary, who led the KLA in scoring, junior Kaitlin Shumate, and sophomore Victoria Bickett each scored two goals and had an assist for Manual. Junior Samantha Segers and freshman Kasey Uhlenhuth each had a goal and an assist, senior Sarah Meyer scored once, and junior Kara Evans had an assist.
Auden called the defeat "a coaching loss" and lamented the consequences for the team’s 12 seniors.
"They had such a great run," he said. "I hate for it to end that way. They played hard. They didn’t leave anything on the field."
Mercy-Kentucky Country Day
The teams were tied 5-5 early in the second half. But the Bearcats scored 14 of the last 16 goals with a barrage of shots that overwhelmed Mercy and its goalie, senior Allison Stovall (20 saves).
"They shot like crazy on her – shot after shot after shot," said Mercy coach Mark Stovall, Allison’s father. "They pass the ball so well. That’s the bottom line. It’s a simple game, and they just do the simple things better."
KCD coach Patrick McAnulty was particularly pleased to see his team dominate the second half.
"We’ve been talking about being a second-half team all year, and we finally did it," he said. "I think that’s the best second half we’ve played. It will take that effort to beat Collegiate."
Freshman Mimi Magruder scored four goals for the Bearcats. Freshman Michelle Worthington had three goals and three assists, junior Christena Burell had three goals and two assists, and freshman Ellen Esterhay had three goals and one assist.
Junior Hayley Grant added two goals and an assist, junior Maggie Flowers had a goal and two assists, and junior Gray Robinson had a goal and an assist.
Freshman goalie Laura Campbell played the first half for KCD and made two saves. Sophomore Kelly Beam replaced her for the second half and made four saves.
Junior Alli Flood scored four goals and assisted on one for Mercy. Junior Katie Spradlin had a goal and an assist, and seniors Amy Clifford and Lauren Flowers each scored once.