by Steffi Carrera ’14

After double overtime and an intense penalty shootout, the Lady Warriors’ soccer team lost to BCC 4-3 in the shootout this past Saturday on Richard Montgomery’s field.

This was a disappointment to the team, who ended with a successful 13-2 season and was enthusiastic about advancing to the state semifinals in the playoffs. The Warriors had beaten BCC 1-0 at a home game earlier in the season, and looked to be the team that finally dethroned the four-time-defending 4A state champions.

“We were ready to take it all” said junior Mollie Rhoades. “But we played hard and I’m proud of how far we made it.”

Throughout the first half, both sides played competitively; BCC’s offense was unable to infiltrate Sherwood’s defense, and the few times they did, senior Nikki Steiner blocked their shots. Sherwood also created opportunities to score, working together on offense to take shots on goal.

The excitement increased during the second half, where the Lady Warriors took many more shots than before. “We dominated second half, but we just couldn’t finish the ball,” said junior Kristen Lauda.

Throughout the game, there was speculation from the crowd as to how well the referee made his calls. Many times, a Sherwood team member appeared to be fouled, but the referee did not make a call that reflected what happened. It wasn’t long before screaming parents and angry students made their voices heard concerning the referee’s questionable calls.

“You can’t blame the game on the ref,” commented Lauda. “He didn’t make any detrimental calls that changed the game. Sometimes it goes your way and sometimes it doesn’t.”

Double overtime increased the tension, but its peak was reached when the girls lined up to take the penalty kicks. The first one to shoot was senior Amanda Pustis, followed by junior Claudia Gomez, senior Hope Gouterman, junior Kristen Lauda, junior Kelly Flamand, and senior Christina Romas. The Lady Warriors at one point led 3-2 and had the chance to win, but ultimately BCC’s sixth shooter ended the match by firing the ball straight to the back of the net.

The BCC Barons will play Arundel’s South River team this Friday at UMBC stadium at 7:30 p.m.