Missouri girls soccer state championships: St. Dominic wins Class 4 title on penalty kicks; hat trick lifts Fort Zumwalt South in Class 3 win; MICDS takes Class 2 title in OT; Whitfield claims Class 1 crown
By Jim Powers
Photos by Sophia Scheller
The St. Dominic girls’ soccer team needed not only two extra periods, but penalty kicks to defeat Nerinx Hall, 1-0, to win the Missouri State High School Activities Association Class 4 State Championship this past Saturday night at Worldwide Soccer Park in Fenton.
The win gave the Crusaders their second consecutive Class 4 title and its third straight in girls’ soccer as they won Class 3 in 2019.
The two teams played an instant classic once again as they met in last year's final, with St. Dominic coming away with a 3-1 victory. In this season’s finale, the two teams played one of the best games that have been played in the state finals.
It was a match that saw both teams take turns controlling the offensive end, with each squad having scoring opportunities during the first 110 minutes. The Crusaders held a 21-10 advantage in shots after regulation and continued to lead that category in the two extra sessions with a 9-6 edge in shots.
Both Caroline Ritter from Nerinx Hall and Kathryn Fitzler from St. Dominic was outstanding in goal for the two teams, with Fitzler making six saves and Ritter making 11 stops in the first 110 minutes of action.
In the penalty kick portion of the match, Julia Shouts opened the session for the Crusaders with a goal while Nerinx Hall’s Nia Preusser matched her with a goal, making it 1-1 after the first round.
After the next shooter from both teams missed their opportunities in the second round, Macie Begley put the Crusaders on top, 2-1, before the Markers saw their shooter miss over the bar and Grace Bindbeutel gave St. Dominic a 3-1 lead with a well-placed shot.
Fitzler gave St. Dominic the title after a save on the fourth shooter for Nerinx Hall to end the match.
St. Dominic finished the season with a 22-3 record while the Markers ended their campaign with a 21-2-2 mark.
In the third place contest, Liberty North scored in the 76th minute to defeat Rock Bridge, 2-1, to take home the trophy.
Class 3 Championship
Ft. Zumwalt South 5, Springfield Glendale 3
Audrey Smith scored a hat trick and added an assist to aid the Fort Zumwalt South girls soccer team in the Missouri State High School Activities Association Class 3 state championship contest at the Worldwide Soccer Park in Fenton this past Saturday afternoon.
The win for the Bulldogs is their second consecutive Class 3 title.
Smith opened the scoring in the 15th minute as she collected a pass from Sarah Bozeman and slotted a shot from 15 yards out into the lower-left corner of the goal to put the Bulldogs ahead, 1-0.
Ashley Miller extended the Fort Zumwalt South lead in the 28th minute as she scored from 10 yards out off a pass from Brooke Cattoor to make the score 2-0.
Cattoor added to the lead in the 34th minute as she took a pass from Smith and found the lower-left side of the net to push the lead to 3-0.
Smith added her second goal of the game early in the second half on a header from Cattoor off a free kick to push the advantage to 4-0.
Glendale cracked the scoreboard in the 47th minute as Annaliese Black scored her first of two goals on a breakaway to make the score 4-1. The Bulldogs answered in the 56th minute as Smith completed the hat trick with a goal on a redirect from 5 yards out to push the advantage to 5-1.
Glendale scored a pair of goals in the final 10 minutes of the match as Reilly Heman and Black each scored to make the score 5-3.
Bozeman earned the win between the pipes with a pair of saves to help the Bulldogs finish their season with a 25-1 record, while Glendale wrapped up their year with a 21-4 mark.
In the third-place match, Smithville defeated Ursuline, 2-1, in penalty kicks to claim third place.
Class 2 Championship
MICDS 2, Orchard Farm 1
Campbell Schultz scored in the 94th minute to aid MICDS to its first state girls soccer title at the Missouri State High School Activities Association Class 2 state finals with a 2-1 overtime victory against Orchard Farm this past weekend in Fenton.
This was also the first appearance that the Rams have made in the state final four.
After a scoreless first 30 minutes of the match, Madolyn Mackin took a pass from Helen Harris and scored from 15 yards out into the lower left side of the goal to put MICDS ahead, 1-0, in the 32nd minute.
The Eagles drew the match even in the 69th minute as Ashlyn Ohlms converted a pass from Bailey Goeke and scored from 7 yards out off the right wing to tie the title game at 1-1.
The score remained tied through the rest of regulation as Parker Scheele of MICDS and Charlize Williams of Orchard Farm kept the sheet clean over the last 21 minutes.
Then in the 84th minute, the Rams took advantage of a free kick as Schultz took that free kick from Scheele and headed the ball into the back of the net from 7 yards out to give MICDS the overtime victory.
Scheele earned the win in goal for the Rams with six saves on the day.
The Rams finished the campaign with a record of 16-6, while Orchard Farm ended the year with a 20-6-1 mark.
In the third-place contest, Pleasant Hill defeated Perryville 2-0 to earn the Class 2 third-place trophy.
Class 1 Championship
Whitfield 3, St. Pius X 0
Whitfield made the most of its first appearance in the Class 1 state finals as Mia Devrouax scored three times in the second half to aid the Warriors to a 3-0 victory against St. Pius X out of Festus this past weekend in Fenton.
This is the first time that Whitfield has won a state girls soccer title, joining its boys team in winning the championship this school year.
After a scoreless first half, Devrouax, a sophomore, found the net in the 57th minute off a breakaway from 8 yards out to put Whitfield on top, 1-0.
Devrouax then found the net again six minutes later as she curled a free kick from 20 yards out into the upper right corner of the goal for a 2-0 lead. She completed the hat trick in the 76th minute as she took passes
from Taylor Gardner and Ava Duel and ripped a shot into the upper left corner from the top of the box.
Gardner earned the shutout victory for the Warriors with two saves as the Whitfield defense limited the Lancers to four shots on the day.
The Warriors ended the season with a 13-6 record, while St. Pius X wrapped up its year with a 15-7-1 mark.
In the third-place contest, Greenwood needed overtime to defeat Mid-Buchanan, 2-1.
