Faith Lutheran girls soccer wins state title rematch — PHOTOS
A desperate late-game rally is all Faith Lutheran’s girls soccer team needed to come out on top in a rematch of last year’s 5A state championship game against Coronado.
The Crusaders, who lost the title game last November, waited until the final seven minutes to overcome a two-goal deficit and win 3-2 at home Monday.
Faith Lutheran didn’t score in the first 73 minutes but created chances throughout. The Crusaders had eight shots, including three on target, before their first goal.
Junior forward Olivia Stark got Faith Lutheran on the board with seven minutes to spare and cut her team’s deficit to 2-1. Two minutes later sophomore Kloe Abdalla set up fellow sophomore Julia Anfinson to tie the game 2-2.
Anfinson led the Crusaders with three shots, two of which hit the post in the first half.
Coronado, even after allowing the equalizer, couldn’t keep Faith Lutheran at bay. Junior Brianna Lee finished off a breakaway to put her team ahead 3-2 in stoppage time.
Crusaders coach Carl Cort said he knew his team could come back from two goals down.
“With the amount of chances we make in a game, something will come. We just decided to leave it as late as possible,” Cort said.
The Cougars raced out to a 2-0 lead with goals at the beginning of each half.
Junior Ryan Neel opened the scoring with a strike from outside the box. Senior Asia Moises then extended the lead just after halftime.
The comeback puts Faith Lutheran in a good position as the regular season winds down. The Crusaders have won four of their last six games.
Coronado, on the other hand, is 1-3-1 its last five games. The Cougars started league play 5-0.
