Faith Lutheran girls soccer wins tight game at Coronado — PHOTOS
An early penalty kick was all Faith Lutheran needed to beat an aggressive Coronado team 1-0 on the road on a gusty Thursday evening.
The Crusaders (13-1-4, 9-1-4 Class 5A Southern League) won a rematch of last year’s state title game for the second time this season. Faith Lutheran, which lost the championship match, also beat the Cougars 3-2 on Sept. 30.
“I think the girls showed a lot of grit today,” coach Carl Cort said.
Faith Lutheran sophomore striker Julia Anfinson got a breakaway in the second minute of the first half before being tripped in the box.
Junior forward Olivia Stark made sure to capitalize on the ensuing penalty kick. She hooked her shot left past the hands of Coronado senior goalkeeper Emma Duda.
“I just focused on putting the ball down because it’s windy, and then I just focused and did my routine and was able to execute,” Stark said.
Coronado (12-4-2, 8-4-2) had plenty of opportunities to tie the game, but it couldn’t capitalize.
Cougars junior forward Jazmine McCallum had a shot hit the top of the post in the second half. The team never found a way to get the ball past Faith Lutheran junior goalkeeper Olivia Petty, who finished with 14 saves.
“We’re excited. It took a lot of work to get here this year,” Petty said. “I kept my focus and understood where I needed to be in position.”
Cort told his team before the game it wasn’t going to be easy. But the Crusaders dug in to earn an impressive win.
“We knew they were going to come out flying because of the way the first game went. We kind of put a target on our back now,” Cort said. “I think we’ve got the players and we’ve created an identity as well, which I think is important in the team. We’ve stuck to who we are throughout the season.”
Contact Jacob Powers at jpowers@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jaypowers__ on X.
