JEFFERSON -- West Hall sophomore keeper Lucy Ibarra wasn’t concerned with history. Her thoughts as she waited with a chance to keep the Lady Spartans season alive were more on the immediacy of the moment.
“I was just thinking don’t let them score. We have to win to keep playing,” she said.
Ibarra’s stop of Jefferson’s Payton Navas followed by Monica Payero’s score in the fifth round of penalty kicks propelled West Hall to a 5-4 (4-3 in PKs) win over the Lady Dragons Thursday at Memorial Stadium in the first round of the Class AAA girls state playoffs. (NOTE: Other area winners on Thursday, included the Lakeview Academy girls, Dawson County girls, Lumpkin County girls and Union County girls; East Hall, Rabun County, Jefferson and East Jackson each fell on Thursday. See below for a complete list of girls soccer first round results and second round match-ups.)
The third-seed from Region 7-AAA, West Hall (6-7-2) now will travel to Savannah to take on Savannah Arts Academy, the No. 1 seed from Region 1-AAA, next Tuesday in the second round. The Lady Panthers shutout Central, Macon 2-0 on Tuesday in their first round match.
It is just the second time in program history the Lady Spartans have advanced to the Sweet 16.
“We really thought this was going to be a rebuilding year because we have so many young players,” West Hall coach Adam Johnson said. “But they have gotten better as the year has gone on.”
Ibarra’s stop along with Jefferson’s Kylee Clay hitting the crossbar in the second round of PKs gave the Lady Spartans just enough room to pull out the improbable win. They would not have gotten to the PK phase if not for a remarkable diving stop by Ibarra on a breakaway shot by Kayla Brown with 12 seconds left in the second overtime to literally save the game.
“I have to admit I didn’t feel great when I saw that happening,” Johnson said. “But Lucy has stepped up for us all year and she did it again tonight.”
The breakaway was caused by a defensive mistake at midfield allowing Brown a clear run at the goal for the possible game-winner. Johnson said the little things have been their undoing most of the season.
“Most of the time we are our own worst enemy,” Johnson said of that play. “But you also saw that this group did not quit. They had a couple of chances to give up but they kept fighting.”
West Hall looked done after Jefferson (9-4-1) scored twice in a 23 minute span to erase a 3-2 Lady Spartans’ lead early in the second half. With the game tied at 3-3, Ibarra initially saved the game for the Lady Spartans with an acrobatic diving stop on a point-blank range shot by Brown with 10:58 left in regulation. But the Lady Dragons got a corner off the save and took advantage.
Maryanne Kilgore scored her second consecutive goal knocking in a loose ball off the pass into the middle with 10:27 left to give Jefferson 4-3 lead.
West Hall pressed the attack over the final 10 minutes but mustered just three shots and none with a serious threat to hit the back of the net until the final seconds.
After an offsides call on Jefferson at midfield with 31 seconds left and the clock running, the Lady Spartans went to work. A long ball down the right side and then a cross by Diana Perez would eventually lead to an open angle for Izabel Salgado, who buried a shot into the back of the net with 0.09 seconds left to send the match to overtime tied at 4.
“An unbelievable goal,” Johnson said. “It just shows how these girls don’t stop until it’s over.”
West Hall struck first in the 2nd minute of the game off a free kick. Katie Kirkland got the first shot off a pass and Salgado powered in her first goal on a rebound off Kirkland’s shot for a 1-0 lead with at 37:08 of the first half.
The Lady Spartans continued to attack with Kirkland taking a 30-yard free kick but Jefferson keeper Emma Pruitt was able to gather the blast just before it crossed the goal line.
Pruitt started a fast break after the save that culminated with Navas dribbling along the end line and then finding Briana Rosales open in front of the West Hall goal and sliding a shot past Ibarra for an easy score to tie the game 1-1 with 32:23 left.
The Lady Dragons kept the pressure on getting two more shots on Ibarra, who was able to keep the game tied. West Hall countered with a long pass but the Lady Spartans could not muster a clean shot on Pruitt.
The Lady Dragons continued to exploit the West Hall defense lobbing high bouncing passes over the defense. Rosales was able to eventually corral one and then moving to her left was able to slide a nifty shot back to her right and under a diving Ibarra for a 2-1 lead with 9:22 left in the first half.
West Hall was poised to tie the game when Kirkland looped a 15-yard free kick on goal four minutes later. But Pruitt was able to get a hand on it at the last moment to push over the crossbar to keep the Lady Dragons’ lead intact with 5:02 left in the first half.
The Lady Spartans got one last corner in the final 30 seconds of the first half and did not waste it. Shelly Anderson was able to blast in a low corner pass from Kirkland with 18 seconds left to tie the game at 2-2 just before the half.
Both teams came out much crisper on offense to start the second half. The Lady Spartans got the first break when a Jefferson defender fell down allowing Perez a long run down the left side. Perez created space for a beautiful cross to Reachel Beaulieu, who knocked it past Pruitt with 33:36 left for a 3-2 lead.
But Jefferson responded moments later. The Lady Dragons stormed downfield and generated a free kick just outside the box to the left of the West Hall goal. Kilgore tied the match at 3-3 on a beautiful looping 20-yard shot just over a leaping Ibarra with 31:25 left.
The Lady Dragons had a golden chance to retake the lead when Brown dribbled through and around the West Hall defense to generate a 7-yard shot but Ibarra made another diving save to keep it tied with 26:10 left.
West Hall had two chances over the next three minutes with a pair of free kicks from 20-yards out. But Pruitt was able to punch out the ball after a series of rebound chances.
Jefferson countered with a long pass that Navas was able to track down and then send a crossing pass into the box. But the Lady Spartans were able to clear the zone.
The two teams’ went back-and-forth over the next 10 minutes but neither team could break the deadlock.
In the overtime, neither team generated much offense in the first five minutes. Jefferson sent two long bouncing passes into the West Hall box but Ibarra was able to corral them.
The second OT was a carbon-copy until the final 90 seconds.
NOTES: West Hall came into the match 0-7-2 when allowing an opponent to score. ... All five of West Hall’s previous wins had been by shutout. ... Jefferson was rolling coming into the playoffs finishing the season on a 5-0-1 streak and allowed just 3 goals in that span. ... West Hall coach Adam Johnson is from Savannah and will be returning to his hometown for their second round match.
GIRLS FIRST ROUND STATE PLAYOFF RESULTS
Class AAAAA
Creekview 1, Gainesville 1 (Creekview advances on penalties, 4-3)
Class AAAA
Buford 11, Northwest Whitfield 0
Chestatee 3, Heritage, Catoosa 0
Southeast Whitfield 4, White County 2
Class AAA
Lumpkin County 8, East Jackson 0
Dawson County 4, Morgan County 0
West Hall 4, Jefferson 4 (West Hall advances on penalties 4-3)
Oconee County 9, East Hall 1
Class AA
Union County 7, Darlington 0
Model 3, Rabun County 0
Class A
Lakeview Academy 8, Christian Heritage 1
GIRLS SOCCER SECOND ROUND STATE PLAYOFF GAMES
Tuesday
Class AAAA
Buford vs. Mary Persons
West Laurens vs. Chestatee
Class AAA
Lumpkin County vs. Pierce County
Dawson County at Peach County
West Hall at Savannah Arts Academy
Class AA
Union County vs. Thomasville
Class A
Lakeview Academy at Fellowship Christian
