Model girls suffer heartbreak in shutout loss to East Laurens

The Lady Devils come up just short in a shoot-out to determine the Elite Eight match.

In the quarterfinals of the GHSA state playoffs, the Model girls’ soccer team proved they belonged among the best teams in Class AA. But when scoring comes at a premium, the final tally can be tough to swallow.

After 90 minutes, the Lady Blue Devils played visiting East Laurens to a stalemate on Friday evening, putting the outcome in the hands of a penalty shoot-out that went the Lady Falcons’ way for a 1-0 final and the end of Model’s postseason run.

It is the second season in a row that the Lady Devils have been ousted in the Elite Eight, but coach Kacie Crowder said her team dealt with the pressure.

“I couldn’t ask for anything better or anymore effort from these girls,” Crowder said after an emotional post-game meeting with the team. “They left everything that they had on this field so I couldn’t be more proud. If you look at them this year, they’ve been dominant this whole season, so we weren’t really sure what to expect out of them. I think the girls really stepped up and held their own.”

Model (17-1-1) pushed East Laurens in a show East Laurens girls 1, Model 0 (5-4 SO)

of will and determination as the Lady Devils held the 2017 state runner-ups scoreless for the first time since last year’s state championship game, which they lost to St. Vincents’ 10-0.

After no goals were made in full time or the two fiveminute

overtime periods, each team prepared for a penalty shoot-out for the first time this season.

“Playing over the top, I think we were faster than their defense,” Crowder said. “They were a little more physical than us and what we normally work with, so that was one of the obstacles we had. We were making connections that really helped us get the ball forward but just couldn’t finish it.”

Each team made their Jeremy Stewart / RN-T

Model’s Jennifer Espinoza (6) prepares to take a shot at the goal in front of East Laurens’ Ke’Asia Butler during the Class AA Elite Eight match Friday at Model’s Woodard-Tuggle Stadium.

shots until the fourth round, when Model’s Nora Grace Snow’s shot went high left and hit off the top of the goal. Leilani Rojas would get one just past the Lady Falcons’ keeper, but East Laurens made its final two attempts to clinch the game.

Lauren Akemon, Jennifer Espinoza and Anna Ruth Parker made Model’s first three penalty shots. Lady Devil keeper Melanie Morrison finished with five saves.