Holy Trinty captures SCISA Class A girls soccer championship

By Neill Kirkpatrick

Special To the HSSR

Bluffton - Holy Trinty's Izzy Harter scored at the 24:45 mark of the first half, off of a corner kick by Harper Squires and the Lady Lions defense pitched a shutout as they captured the SCISA Class A girls state soccer championship at Hilton Head Christian Academy Saturday afternoon defeating the Beaufort Academy Lady Eagles 2-0

Squires and Harter connected again at the 11:25 mark of the second half for the final margin of victory.

"This feels absolutely amazing," said Harter. "Our team played amazing together and I love everyone on this team. We wanted this rematch, and we wanted this win and we got it."

This was co-head coach Hunter Squires final match on the pitch and it could not have gone any better for her and her girls.

"This team was amazing all year. The girls play for each other, they love each and they are going to play with their hearts every match, " Squires said. "This was my last match so it is so sweet to go out on top with this team."

It was tough end to a great season for the Lady Eagles and head coach Chris Jones. "We played as team like we have all year, but we were a bit unlucky and hats off to Holy Trinty. They made a couple more plays than we did and that is what happens sometimes," said coach Jones.

The first half started with Holy Trinty spend the majority of the team on the Beaufort Academy’s side of the pitch after BA’s senior Claire Tumlin’s corner kick went through the box. Tumlin was the only senior on the pitch.

Holy Trinity’s used the speed of it is forwards to flip the field. Harter, Squires, Bryant Salley and Bryar Twitty kept the Lady Eagles and their keeper Mads Trice fending off scoring chances.

Trice and her defense of Kate Brosman, Brielle Young, Angle Pez, and Kaz Green were able to fight off the barge until Harter and Squires connected for the first time.

After Twitty’s shot on goal from the top of the right side of the box was cleared for an HT corner kick. Squires took the corner from the left side and placed the ball low towards the net. Harter popped in from the right side and put the ball into the back of the net for a 1-0 HT lead at the 24:45 mark of the first half.

The Lady Eagles responded with their top player Keileey Good pushing the ball up the pitch to get some shots on goal. Coming into the match Good had scored 40 goals coming into Saturday’s match.

The problem for Good was that HT was marking her with three and sometimes four ladies when she had the ball and behind them was goalkeeper Abby Schaub who had allowed only six goals all season.

The Ladies in front of Schaub were Sarah Anderson, Payton Kalor, Lilly Cooler and AnnaCate Gray. This quartet made sure that Good was never alone and they frustrated her all day long.

“Our defense has been solid all season and they came out on fire today. They covered each other all day long,” said coach Squires. “We know that Good is a great player, who can create her own shot so we wanted to keep someone on her at all times.”

The second half started with BA pushing the ball deep into HT’s side of the pitch with Good getting off a couple of shots on goal.

Harter then broke out and raced down the right side of the pitch to get a shot on goal that went wide right.

The teams continued to press each other with each defense producing big stops to keep the score at one-nil.

Then at the 16:31 mark of the second half BA had its best chance to tie the match up when Bella Lippy sent a shot toward the right corner of the HT goal. As the ball neared the goal, Schaub dove to her right and made the save of the game.

After HT cleared the ensuing corner kick by Tumlin they moved the ball quickly to the Lady Eagles side of the pitch where they got off a couple of shots on goal and three corner kicks in a short span of time.

On their third corner is when Squires and Harter connected again, Squires sent the ball across the box where Harter headed into the net on left side and with 10:34 to go the Lady Lions lead was 2-0.

BA tried to counter but each time they were turned back and HT would make a run up the field. Harter almost had a hat trick as she got the ball and raced up the left side to place another shot on goal at the 6:20 mark but Trice came up with another save.

The Lady Eagles had one more great opportunity to get on the board with less than two minutes to go in the contest when Good drew a foul just outside the box. The penalty gave BA a free kick but Tumlin’s shot was just over the crossbar.

The win capped off a perfect season for the Lady Lions at 12-0 and was their third win of the year over the defending state champions, Beaufort Academy Lady Eagles.