The Signal Mountain Lady Eagle soccer team played for 110 minutes through four overtime periods, and took 33 shots, but could not find the net. Signal's Reilly Furr, Kennedy Ethridge and Avery Engels converted on their penalty kicks and Signal keeper Amanda Muschal had two big penalty kick saves to earn the 1-0 win in Wednesday's Class A state quarterfinal game in Murfreesboro.
Signal Mountain head coach, Richard Northcutt, likened his team's play to a basketball team taking too many three-pointers.
"We were not taking good shots," Norcthcutt said. "We were just too far away. We told them they had to get closer. I wouldn't mind so much if our shots were whizzing over the goal but they weren't. If we were a basketball team I would have told them to stop shooting threes."
Richland had one shot on goal according to the official stats.
"We had by far the better chances," Northcutt said. "We thought for sure we were going to score but we didn't. We got more and more tired and didn't sub much."
Signal goalkeeper Amanda Muschal, who touched the ball just a handful of times during play, came up big on two Richland penalty kicks. The first one was an athletic save with one hand and then a foot. On the second one, she stretched out and pushed the ball wide.
"That was the game winner," Northcutt said. "Those were saves only an athlete can get. All of our shooters took great shots."
The Lady Eagles move on to the state semifinals which are Thursday at 2 p.m. Signal Mountain will play Chuckey-Doak who won their quarterfinal match 3-0. The Class A state championship game is set for Saturday at 11 a.m.