Wednesday night’s regional soccer championship match between the University Heights Academy Lady Blazers and the Hopkins County Central Lady Storm was almost a carbon copy of the first time the two teams met earlier this season. In fact, it did end up with the same final score.
Alyssa Grise’s goal at the 58:45 mark put the Lady Blazers ahead, and then the UHA defense made the one-goal margin stand up as the Lady Blazers turned back Hopkins County Central 2-1 to pick up the school’s first girls’ regional soccer championship since 2008 and the first under the current soccer regional alignment.
In the 2008 season, the Lady Blazers knocked off Hopkinsville 1-0 after beating Caldwell County 5-4 in the regional semifinals. That team would lose 1-0 to Marshall County in the state sub-sectional round.
The game played out much like the September 25th meeting between the two teams. UHA’s offense put consistent pressure on the Lady Storm defense, which found a way to stay in the match despite a huge shot disadvantage, thanks to its physicality and intensity.
The UHA defense did not allow the Lady Storm many good looks at the net, with Hopkins County Central having to make the best of what opportunities presented themselves.
The Lady Blazers took advantage of a fortunate bounce of the ball to get on the boards first Wednesday night. Audrey Perry drilled a rocket shot just outside the box that hit the crossbar at the 7:00 mark. The rebound of the shot came off the bar so quickly that Central keeper Savannah Barnett did not have time to turn around and find the ball, and the ball then bounced off her back and into the goal, putting UHA up 1-0.
UHA continued to control the flow of play through the half, but the Lady Blazers were not able to strike again during the first 40 minutes.
The Lady Storm were held without a shot until the 26:20 mark, but they made the best of that first opportunity when it came along. After a foul call about 10 yards in front of the box, Mary Starks stepped up and got a direct kick past the outstretched arms of UHA keeper Madison Williams into the right side of the net, tying the match at 1-1.
That would be the score as the two teams went off to the break. UHA racked up a big shot advantage in the half, getting of 14 shots to the Lady Storm’s two.
The second half got underway and the flow of play did not change as the UHA offense kept pushing forward, putting the heat on the Hopkins Central defense. But again, the Lady Storm found a way to keep turning back the UHA attack, except for one play, that turned out to decided the regional title.
Off a corner kick. Alyssa Grise found herself with the ball in front of the goal. She turned to the left, aimed, and fired a shot that cleared the reach of Savannah Barnett and gave UHA a 2-1 lead.
Over the rest of the second half, Hopkins County Central was able to keep turning the Lady Blazers away as the Lady Storm got some big efforts from Kenzleigh Harrison, Destiny Caudill, and the rest of the defense.
The big problem for the Lady Storm is that UHA was getting the same kind of performance on the back line, with big efforts from Ajae Oatts and Emma Tyler.
The Lady Storm looked as if they were going to have one last great look to pull even for a second time in the final two minutes when Sydney McLemore got a run going down the right side of the field, but the Lady Blazers were able to get back and not allow the Lady Storm a shot, and that would end the threat as the Lady Blazers held on until the final horn, and then the celebration was on.
Shots on goal told a big part of the story for the night as UHA outshot the Lady Storm 25 to 3 for the match.
Central goalie Savannah Barnett helped to keep her team in the match, finishing with 9 saves.
Hopkins County Central, which was making its first regional finals appearance, ends the season at 15-4-0.
UHA improves to 19-2-1 and advances to the first round of the KHSAA State Tournament. The Lady Blazers will play at either Owensboro or Daviess County early next week. The Lady Red Devils and the Lady Panthers are playing Thursday night in the 3rd Region championship match.
