Unlike any other sport, soccer can sometimes deal what seems to be an unfair hand. Such was the case on Sunday afternoon against host and top-seeded North Alabama. The Lee women seemed to dominate most every phase of the game but regulation and two-overtime periods concluded in a 0-0 draw.
The contest entered the penalty-kick phase to decide which team would be named the champions of the Gulf South Conference Tournament. Like the first 90 minutes and the 20 minutes of overtime, the Lady Flames and Lions were almost dead even again.
Lee stepped up and missed its first attempt and North Alabama followed with a make. Lee bounced right back to tie it at one and hopes were running high after the Lions missed and the Lady Flames converted to move out to a 2-1 advantage.
Things got even more interesting as North Alabama keeper Eleanor Costello picked up a key save. Another successful attempt put UNA on top but Lee's Suzanne Arant stepped up and put Lee on top 3-2. The advantage didn't last long as a UNA make knotted the battle at three. The Lady Flames watched as their next attempt bounced off the crossbar and UNA's Stacey Webber nailed her shot into the back of the net to touch off the Lions celebration with a 4-3 PK decision.
Lee dominated the stat charts. In the first half coach Chris Hennessey's club out-shot UNA, 7-3. The Lions did fight back for an 8-6 shot advantage in the second stanza but the Lady Flames came right back in the first OT for a 3-2 advantage and a 1-0 margin in the second overtime. All totaled, Lee took 17 shots and placed five on target. UNA fired 13 shots and four were on goal. Not only did the Lady Flames play well on the offensive end, their defense completely contained one of the nation's leading scorers in UNA's Chloe Richards. The All-American forward has recorded 30 goals to this point in the season.
The contest could have very well ended in regulation. A couple of Lee shots caromed off the top of the bar and another shot rolled within a couple of inches of the goal line before Lion keeper Costello quickly yanked the ball away.
"I'm super proud of this group," said Hennessey as his Lady Flames wiped away the tears. "Our girls played fantastic soccer all weekend. They've shown great courage and commitment all year and I want to thank Laura (Thacker) and Molly (McLaughlin) for their service to the program.
"As for today, I personally feel the better team lost," Hennessey confessed. "We hit the frame of the goal three times and had a couple of really good chances in open play. Today's performance showed how far these girls have come over the course of the season. Penalties are always a tough way to loose and I commend those who stepped up to take those today." The coach went on to praise the work of his assistants Luidgi Beauzile and Amy Cooley. He also thanked the work of the Lee training staff for keeping his team healthy.
Thacker, McKenzie Bricker and Megan Newman represented Lee on the GSC All-Tournament Team. The Lady Flames will wait for the NCAA selection shows for soccer: http://www.NCAA.com/liveschedule/2015/11/09 on Monday at 6:30 to see if they have earned a spot in the upcoming NCAA Region 6 tournament.