SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The St. Francis soccer team advanced to the Sac-Joaquin Section D2 Championship game with a 2-1 overtime win over Granite Bay on Tuesday. Senior Marli Berry provided the game winner in the second overtime period as the Troubadours advanced to the section final for the second consecutive season.
“We had talked about getting one more combination to get into range,” said Head Coach Maryclaire Robinson ’86. “It was great. We had a wall pass and 2v1 and Marli held her off and buried it. It was a clutch goal.”
No. 4 Granite Bay and top-seeded St. Francis battled to a scoreless first half as both teams provided early pressure. SF goalies Kim Riley and Mia Collins both had solid games.
“They were huge,” said Robinson. “It is a small field and they played the long game really well. It created a lot of chaos. The keepers were confident and steady.”
Senior Taylor Earle broke the scores less tie with a goal early in the second half.
“We were knocking on the door and we have confidence scoring,” said Robinson. “Taylor Earle’s shot is so hard, it is hard to manage. Everyone hold’s their breath because they know it is coming.”
The Troubadours tried to close out the shutout but the Grizzlies were able to connect off a corner late in the second half to force the overtime periods.
The teams played two 10-minute overtime periods to try to decide the game and Berry was able to get the Troubies a second goal in the 92nd minute.
The Troubadours will play Ponderosa at Noon on Saturday at Whitney High School. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and $5 for students.
St. Francis will be looking for their first section title since 2014 and 14th in school history. The win also qualified the program for the CIF Northern California Regionals for the second consecutive season. The Troubies won the title in 2019.
The CIF Northern California Regional Soccer bracket will be announced on the CIFSports365 App Sunday at 2 pm. https://www.fanthreesixty.com/
Sac-Joaquin Section Bracket
http://www.cifsjs.org/sports/wsoc/2019-20info/sc_girls_bracketd2_20.pdf
