Pius X girls fall to Elkhorn in shootout
OMAHA — Makenzie Gillaspie isn’t one for drama.
“I prefer not to go into shootouts,” the Elkhorn senior said bluntly.
Yeah, but this will make a better story one day. A story about the day Lincoln Pius X forced overtime with an improbable late goal, but Elkhorn rallied in a shootout to keep its dream of a repeat state championship alive.
The second-ranked Antlers beat No. 4 Pius X 2-1 in the semifinals of the Class B Girls State High School Soccer Tournament on Saturday. Elkhorn won the shootout 4-3.
Now it’s a matchup against No. 1 Omaha Skutt in Monday’s state championship match.
Saturday’s match ended in dramatic fashion when the Thunderbolts’ Norma Volkmer watched her penalty shot bounce off the crossbar in the final round of the shootout to set off the Antlers’ celebration.
Elkhorn made each of its four penalty kicks in the shootout.
Michelle Miller, Larissa Jondle and Sara Berens made penalty kicks for the Thunderbolts in the shootout.
Pius X extended the match with a crazy shot by sophomore Heather Feltes with four minutes left in regulation.
The goal happened after the Thunderbolts were awarded a free kick. The initial kick deflected off an Elkhorn player, but bounced to Feltes, who booted the ball toward the goal. From 40 yards away, the ball lofted some 30 yards into the air, and dropped into the top of the goal out of the reach of the Elkhorn keeper.
Feltes said getting a shot on goal wasn’t her intention.
“I was actually trying to pass the ball into the box, but I hit it too hard,” she said.
“I didn’t even see it go in,” Feltes added. “I got knocked down, and when I got up I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, that went in, are you kidding me?’”
Gillaspie also was surprised at the goal.
“I was completely shocked,” she said. “I had no idea that was going in. That was way downtown.”
Cathleen Cox scored in the 50th minute to give Elkhorn an early lead. Cox lofted a nifty shot from 16 yards into the far corner of the net.
Elkhorn had most of the good scoring chances.
“I think we came out a little timid,” Pius X coach Josh St. Pierre said. “But our team is comprised of a lot of youth. The second half we really picked it up.”
The Thunderbolts (12-5) had been in two other shootouts this season, winning both.
Despite a rash of injuries, including losing leading scorer Nancy Schueth, Pius X was in the state semifinals for the seventh straight year.
“We’ve been decimated, but we brought up a lot of freshmen and sophomores who have really stepped in, and the future of this program looks great,” Pierre said.
O. Skutt 5, Gretna 2
One of the top young players in the state and a proven veteran delivered for Omaha Skutt in the second semifinal.
Freshman Mayme Conroy scored three goals, and junior Stacy Bartels had two for the SkyHawks.
Gretna pulled to 3-2 with 20 minutes to play, but Conroy scored twice after that to put the match away.
Reach Brent C. Wagner at 473-7435 or bwagner@journalstar.com.
“I prefer not to go into shootouts,” the Elkhorn senior said bluntly.
Yeah, but this will make a better story one day. A story about the day Lincoln Pius X forced overtime with an improbable late goal, but Elkhorn rallied in a shootout to keep its dream of a repeat state championship alive.
The second-ranked Antlers beat No. 4 Pius X 2-1 in the semifinals of the Class B Girls State High School Soccer Tournament on Saturday. Elkhorn won the shootout 4-3.
Now it’s a matchup against No. 1 Omaha Skutt in Monday’s state championship match.
Saturday’s match ended in dramatic fashion when the Thunderbolts’ Norma Volkmer watched her penalty shot bounce off the crossbar in the final round of the shootout to set off the Antlers’ celebration.
Elkhorn made each of its four penalty kicks in the shootout.
Michelle Miller, Larissa Jondle and Sara Berens made penalty kicks for the Thunderbolts in the shootout.
Pius X extended the match with a crazy shot by sophomore Heather Feltes with four minutes left in regulation.
The goal happened after the Thunderbolts were awarded a free kick. The initial kick deflected off an Elkhorn player, but bounced to Feltes, who booted the ball toward the goal. From 40 yards away, the ball lofted some 30 yards into the air, and dropped into the top of the goal out of the reach of the Elkhorn keeper.
Feltes said getting a shot on goal wasn’t her intention.
“I was actually trying to pass the ball into the box, but I hit it too hard,” she said.
“I didn’t even see it go in,” Feltes added. “I got knocked down, and when I got up I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, that went in, are you kidding me?’”
Gillaspie also was surprised at the goal.
“I was completely shocked,” she said. “I had no idea that was going in. That was way downtown.”
Cathleen Cox scored in the 50th minute to give Elkhorn an early lead. Cox lofted a nifty shot from 16 yards into the far corner of the net.
Elkhorn had most of the good scoring chances.
“I think we came out a little timid,” Pius X coach Josh St. Pierre said. “But our team is comprised of a lot of youth. The second half we really picked it up.”
The Thunderbolts (12-5) had been in two other shootouts this season, winning both.
Despite a rash of injuries, including losing leading scorer Nancy Schueth, Pius X was in the state semifinals for the seventh straight year.
“We’ve been decimated, but we brought up a lot of freshmen and sophomores who have really stepped in, and the future of this program looks great,” Pierre said.
O. Skutt 5, Gretna 2
One of the top young players in the state and a proven veteran delivered for Omaha Skutt in the second semifinal.
Freshman Mayme Conroy scored three goals, and junior Stacy Bartels had two for the SkyHawks.
Gretna pulled to 3-2 with 20 minutes to play, but Conroy scored twice after that to put the match away.
Reach Brent C. Wagner at 473-7435 or bwagner@journalstar.com.
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