Seahawks advance as runner-up
By Kyle LoJacono
The Class 3A-District 7 girls soccer tournament final turned out to be a battle of cross-town rivals Jan. 18, with top-seeded Land O’ Lakes defeating Sunlake 2-0 to claim consecutive league championships.
The Gators (17-4-4) and Seahawks (10-8-4) played to a scoreless tie in the first half, but junior forward/midfielder Catherine Gray put her squad up 1-0 in the 45th minute on her ninth goal of the season.
Senior midfielder Holly Nasello added her team-leading 14th tally of the season in the 75th minute.
The Seahawks (10-8-4) will have to wait for their first district crown but qualified for the first playoff berth and clinched their first winning season in the program’s six-year history.
“Before the year, we had a team meeting to discuss what our goals were and what we need to work on,” said Sunlake coach Jami Finan. “Every game after that was like baby steps, and that’s kind of what we’ve been doing all season long.”
Land O’ Lakes needed overtime to defeat tournament host Wesley Chapel 1-0 in the semifinals Jan. 16.
“It’s hard to get through the semifinal game,” Vicky King said. “You come in as the No. 1 seed with a target on your back the whole time.”
The Gators dominated possession and piled up nine shots on Wildcats (7-9-2) goalkeeper Autumn Cooper while allowing none in the contest.
“It was really frustrating because we knew that we could score, but it just wasn’t happening,” Gray said. “We were dominating the game, but we had nothing.”
Gray changed that in the final minute of overtime when she chested in the game winner off a header attempt by Savanna Ronk.
“Coach King was telling us to follow every single ball in the box for rebounds or if the goalie makes a mistake,” Gray said. “I followed it into the back, and it worked.”
The game-winning attempt was created by a cross from sophomore midfielder Mitsy Audate.
“It took a lot of work late in a long game,” Audate said. “I didn’t know I had it in me to get it all the way across. I just knew I had to give it everything I had.”
Gray said she couldn’t waste the chance.
“When I saw her making the run I was just thinking we need to put this in the back of the net,” Gray said.
Sunlake defeated Pasco 2-0 in the other semifinal.
Senior goalkeeper Maya Kamat, who has been on the varsity squad since her freshman season, made three saves for her ninth shutout of the season to help secure the postseason berth.
“To do it my senior year and to know that we’ve progressed every season is just an amazing feeling,” Kamat said. She added, “We knew that we’d beaten Pasco the last couple of times, but we knew it could be anyone’s game. To get through, I’m just really proud of my team.”
Neither squad was able to gain an advantage in possession in the first few minutes. The tide changed in the Seahawks favor when sophomore midfielder Cassidy Kallenborn buried home a loose ball rebound in the 15th minute.
“The first 10 to 15 minutes set the game’s tone, and she set the tone with that goal,” Kamat said of Kallenborn’s tally.
Emily Higgins added an insurance goal in the 70th minute.
Sunlake was without its leader in points Cassidy Place (eight goals, seven assists) in the semis because of an illness.
“It’s a little upsetting not having a key player, but it just pushed us to work a little harder,” Kallenborn said.
Kallenborn added that everyone on the squad recognized they could earn the playoff berth.
“We knew from the start that we had a lot of talent,” Kallenborn said. “We knew with the girls we had we could do this. We all mesh well together and work hard off each other.”
Land O’ Lakes hosts Hudson and Sunlake travels to Mitchell Jan. 23 in the regional quarterfinals. Both games start at 7 p.m.
—Follow Kyle LoJacono on Twitter: @Kyle_Laker
