The R.D. Parker Collegiate girls' soccer team had a golden opportunity to take the lead in the Oct. 2 Zone 11 championship final against Hapnot Collegiate Institute of Flin Flon, but a missed penalty shot proved to be the turning point, as Hapnot scored with about 10 minutes left to win 3-2.
Hapnot will represent Zone 11 at the Manitoba High Schools Athletic Association soccer provincials Oct. 15-16 in Swan River.
"I'm very proud of the team," said Trojans coach Stan Wong. "How can I not be proud of them? The loss is difficult to take because they played well enough to win."
The score was 2-2 in the second half when one of Hapnot's Kopper Kweens was whistled for a handball in the penalty box.
The Trojans' Janaye Tucker-Titanich had just scored a few minutes earlier from a scramble following a corner kick. But Tatum O'Meara's penalty kick failed to find the goal and Hapnot's Delaney McIntyre notched her second goal of the game soon afterwards.
"She's the one that was their hero," said Wong. "It was a back-and-forth game through the entire hour-and-a-half. The game kept going to the final whistle."
The Trojans jumped out to an early lead less than 10 minutes into the match when Tori Franko broke in on the last defender and put a shot past the goaltender. The lead lasted for 10 minutes and Hapnot took its first lead 10 minutes after tying the game on a free kick from just outside the box that sailed over RDPC's defenders and goaltender.
The Trojans thought they had a goal when a corner kick curled into the bottom corner of the net and a Hapnot defender played it out while standing behind the goal line, but the referee and linesman ruled it hadn't crossed the line.
"We had our opportunities," said Wong. "I can't complain. The girls played fabulous."
The Trojans won two of three games in the round-robin portion of the tournament, thumping the Margaret Barbour Collegiate Institute Spartans from The Pas by a score of 10-0 and getting past Joe A. Ross School from Opaskwayak Cree Nation 4-1. Their only loss came at the hands of Hapnot, who edged the Trojans 4-3 in the teams' round-robin match.
This marks the second consecutive time that Hapnot has defeated the Trojans girls' soccer team 3-2 in zone championships hosted in Thompson. In 2007, the Kopper Kweens tied the final with less than five minutes left and went on to score an overtime goal for the victory.
Last year, the Trojans' girls lost to Hapnot in a shootout to determine the zone champion.
In 2008, RDPC beat Hapnot 2-0 to claim the Zone 11 championship.
"I have the utmost respect for their coach," said Wong. "Don [Kirkham]'s a fabulous coach who works very well with those girls. I'd like to wish the Thompson boys and the Hapnot girls the best of luck at the provincials."
