Jefferson tops Parkersburg in shootout marathon

November 04, 2007

BECKLEY — Jefferson didn’t just win a state championship game Saturday afternoon.

The Cougars won one for the ages.

Heather Shaffer drilled a penalty kick into the right side of the net to give Jefferson a 2-1 victory over defending state champion Parkersburg in a record 13-round shootout in the girls high school soccer state championship game at Paul Cline Stadium in the YMCA Youth Sports Complex.

“I couldn’t breathe, there was so much pressure,” said Shaffer, a junior, who handed the Cougars their first state title in soccer. “But I knew it was a good strike.”

Only one other state final had gone to a shootout, Wheeling Park’s 1-0 win over Morgantown in 2001.

After finishing regulation and four overtimes tied at 1-all, the teams alternated shots on 12 penalty kicks apiece.

Jefferson (17-5-5), which was making its second straight state tournament appearance and third overall, nearly lost when Parkersburg senior keeper Kelsey Graham got a hand on senior Kaitlyn Mahoney’s shot in the 10th round. The ball was deflected back into the goal, however, evening the count at 10.

Cougars senior keeper Sarah Cooper made the play of the game in the 13th round, turning in a diving stop on a kick by junior Brooke Logston. Cooper finished with a pair of stops.

“We’re so elated. We came from nowhere,” said veteran Jefferson coach Harold Bache. “A referee told me people were asking where Jefferson was from. I think they know now.”

The Parkersburg standout had made an earlier shot in the third round.

Parkersburg (21-2-2) led for much of regulation. Alex Bush brought the ball into the box in the 28th minute, made a beautiful move on a defender, took two steps and fired off Cooper’s hands for a 1-0 lead.

The Cougars did not get a shot on goal until the 69th minute, when junior Katie Perry took a pass from her sister Jenny, also a junior, and launched a shot past Graham for the equalizer.

Graham finished regulation play, two 10-minute overtimes and two five-minute sudden victory overtimes with four saves.