Evans’ OT goal lifts Mooney to District title

By JOHN HARRIS

sports@vindy.com

GIRARD

Goals are synonymous with Cardinal Mooney’s girls soccer team. The Cardinals score in bunches.

Until Thursday night, that is.

The Division III district final, played in a steady rain on a wet and slick turf, went against character for high-scoring Mooney against Ursuline. What developed into a defensive struggle between longtime rivals ended when sophomore Breanna Evans scored with 10:30 remaining in overtime giving the Cardinals a 2-1 win at Arrowhead Stadium.

Mooney (16-3), ranked No. 10 in the final state coaches poll, carries a season-high eight-game winning streak into Tuesday’s regional semifinal against Gilmour Academy at Solon High School. Gilmour Academy, ranked No. 1 in the final poll, defeated Mooney 6-2 on Aug. 27.

Advancing to regionals wasn’t easy for the Cardinals.

“This is Ursuline. This is a rivalry game. You know the hype and emotion going in. And it’s a district game,” said University of Michigan-bound Mooney senior Elizabeth Philibin, who entered the contest with 37 goals this season but didn’t score against the Irish. “Obviously, everyone’s going to give it everything they’ve got.”

Ursuline (8-4-1) battled Mooney last month in a 6-5 loss, but the Cardinals’ offensive prowess made them prohibitive favorites to defeat the Irish a second time.

The numbers were on Mooney’s side. Entering Thursday’s rematch, the Cardinals outscored their previous seven opponents 60-2, including winning their first three playoff games by a 37-1 margin.

But that all changed against Ursuline, which took at 1-0 lead with 17:04 remaining in the first half but led only briefly when Mooney tied the score less than a minute later.

Ursuline, however, played masterful defense in a physical and emotional contest. The Irish challenged every pass and shot and held the Cardinals scoreless in the second half, forcing overtime.

“They locked down defensively on us,” Mooney coach Frank Sikich said. “We had a lot of the possession, but they stopped us from getting shots off.”

Ursuline coach Roy Schmidt agreed that his players were diligent in following the gameplan to near perfection. But their one lapse in overtime proved costly.

“We decided to close out their avenues and not give them room,” Schmidt said. “They came at us real hard in overtime. They kept pressuring, but we didn’t clear.”

Mooney carried the play in the extra period, keeping the ball in Ursuline’s end. The dam finally broke when sophomore Carolyn Kay passed to Evans, who calmly delivered her 29th goal of the season only 4:30 into overtime.

“I was at the right spot,” Evans said.

“Great goal,” Sikich said. “We wanted to go outside-in. The ball went out, came back in, and we found our center forward.”