Norwin girls soccer team just misses Highmark. The girls lost on penalty kicks to Seneca Valley 5-4, one game short of the WPIAL Championship in Pittsburgh.
After an undefeated section season, the Lady Knights were seeded 3rd in the WPIAL playoffs. They skipped the first round of playoffs with a bye and headed straight to the quarter-finals.
On the cold and rainy evening of October 23, the Lady Knights played the Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils at the Castle.
There was tension as the Lady Knights have consistently played the Blue Devils over the years, developing a playoff rivalry.
The Lady Knights defeated the Blue Devils in their season opener with a score of 2-1, but fell to Mt. Lebanon in penalty kicks in the first round of playoffs last year.
The Lady Knights battled through the game, but at the end of regulation, neither team found the net. The game was vigorous and aggressive as Bella Buscemi, Cameryn Reed, and Tatum Casper all received yellow cards.
Tension, hard work, and desire were in the air. As the Lady Knights headed to overtime with a score of 0-0, they were not ready to let their season end.
The girls shot, passed, and dribbled through the first 15-minute period of overtime but still could not find the goal. Senior goalkeeper Rebecca Kostraballa made save after save, and the defensive line barely let anyone through.
Neilah Schade, Alexa Kobus, and Reed consistently held out the blue devils from getting near the net.
The midfield and forwards worked together to move the ball around the Blue Devils, but it was a difficult task as Mt. Lebanon was a pretty even match for the Lady Knights. Nicole Bown, Neeve Graham, and Leesia Phetsomphou worked together with skill and composure to control the midfield.
With less than a minute left in double overtime, the Lady Knights began to mentally prepare for penalty kicks.
But all of a sudden, the Lady Knights had one last chance at a goal as Gianna Marts passed the ball to Sienna Ali, who then crossed the ball in front of the net.
The ball was knocked off a Blue Devil defender, giving Phetsomphou the chance of a lifetime.
The ball reflected off the Blue Devil defender, and immediately Phetsomphou hit the ball in mid-air into the top right corner. Suddenly, Phetsomphou, a freshman, put the ball in the back of the net with 46 seconds left in double overtime.
The rest of the Lady Knights rushed to Phetsomphou as she secured their spot in the semi-final.
On Monday, October 27, the Lady Knights headed to North Allegheny to play the WPIAL 2nd seed, the Seneca Valley Raiders.
The Lady Knights were determined to win the game after training hard following the quarter-final win.
The Knights kicked off, and it was a battle. The matchup was pretty perfect as the Lady Knights and Raiders played similar styles to each other. The game was pretty clean and an even matchup.
After a score of 0-0 in regulation, the game moved into overtime.
All of the players worked as hard as they could and both teams had chances where they almost scored. After two 15-minute periods of overtime, the score was still 0-0.
It was time for penalty kicks.
The Lady Knights and Raiders sent their 5 penalty kickers onto the field. Tension, nerves, and excitement rattled the air.
Reed was the first kicker. She shot an excellent shot that went to the left side of the goal, but the Raiders’ goalkeeper made a huge save.
The Raiders made all of their penalty kicks, and the Knights made the rest of theirs.
The Knights fell to the Raiders 4-5 in penalty kicks. Although the team was devastated, they were happy to see how far they had come.
“We all make mistakes, but we grow from them and do not let them tear us down,” Bown explained.
The team hopes to make it to Highmark next year and continue to make long playoff runs in the future.
It will be a huge switch-up for the Lady Knights next year as a lot of their key players will graduate and move on to play college soccer.
The Lady Knights are determined to carry on the glory of the Norwin Girls’ soccer legacy.
