Shorewood High School’s girls varsity soccer team wins 3A District 1 Championship, and going to State

Shorewood Soccer team wins 3A District 1 Championship
and will be going to State competition

Shorewood high school’s girls varsity soccer team put on a bravura performance last Saturday night in wet, freezing conditions at the 3A District 1 playoff final match of the league postseason soccer tournament.

They wrapped up the Wesco 3A league title on October 28, 2021 with a record of 13-2-0, and qualified as the #1 seed for the District playoffs, with the top RPI ranking in the league.

In the quarter-final, they faced arch-rival Shorecrest in a local derby, getting a flattering 3-0 win.

The semi-final was a much closer affair against Northwest 3A challengers Ferndale, spurning several chances, but making the decisive strike to eke out a 1-0 triumph. This earned them the right to face the #2 seed Snohomish in the 3A District 1 Championship Final on Saturday, November 6th.

In a game punctuated by torrential rain and a brief stoppage for hail, the difficult conditions produced a taut, nervy battle, full of twists and turns. 

Shorewood Thunderbirds would take the lead on a brilliant free-kick, but the Panthers tested their mettle, equalizing late in the final quarter. Shorewood responded quickly, with another magnificent free-kick by their stalwart center-back, #6. 

With the clock ticking down into the final two minutes, Snohomish sent forward wave after wave of attacks as Shorewood clung on desperately. In the waning moments, Snohomish sent one last frenzied shot that arcs high and perfectly below the crossbar into the net, sending the game into overtime.

 

A Golden Goal in OT would instantly end the game, producing high drama, with several close shaves and near misses. It seemed inevitable that this pulsating match would end in the ultimate of gut-wrenching endings, Penalty Kicks, punishment for not winning the game in regulation. 

The kicks begin routinely with four consecutive goals easily made, then two high kicks over the bar by each side, and two more made kicks, placing the game squarely in the balance of the last two kicks. The nerve-wracking ordeal was beginning to take its toll, and the Panther player blinks first by clanging her shot off the right post.

T-bird captain and MVP #6 steps up, fixes her steely gaze for one more wonder kick, and calmly slots home the ball. Pandemonium ensues, as they lay claim to the title of 3A District 1 Champions. Shorewood gets their Senior redemption, where as Freshmen, three years ago in 2018, in the same District Final, against the same opponent, they had lost a penalties heartbreaker. 

Shorewood’s JV team finished the season undefeated with a superb record of 12-0-2, finishing 2nd in the league table. 

Shorewood had last week claimed another more impressive prize, namely the 2021 WIAA 3A Girls Soccer Academic State Champions, with an outstanding cumulative 3.95 GPA. They thus repeated their achievement from 2019, reaffirming their status as true scholar-athletes. (see previous article)

Can they top it with the trifecta of a 3A Soccer State Championship as well? That chapter remains to be written, as they attempt to do what was last done by their predecessors 22 years ago, in 1999. The State Tournament begins November 12/13 and ends November 19/20.

--Sports Desk