St. Vincent girls soccer breaks through in second half, defeats New Covenant Academy 3-0 in Class 1 semifinal

Under defensive pressure from New Covenant Academy's Aubrey Kkemish, Anna Schwartz of St. Vincent tries to take a shot in the Class 1 semifinals Wednesday, May 29, 2019, at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City, Mo. St. Vincent advanced to the finals with a 3-0 win over the Warriors.

Ryan Weaver ~ Special to the Southeast Missourian

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — When the shot flew into the back of the net, St. Vincent girls soccer coach Caitlin Pistorio saw a weight lifted off her players' shoulders. The pressure to score evaporated just like that.

After 51 minutes and 7 seconds of domination, the Indians had finally got the breakthrough thanks to Reese Barber's strike from 18 yards out.

That was the first of three second-half goals the Indians scored to pull away from the defensive-minded New Covenant Academy Warriors and post a 3-0 victory in a Class 1 state semifinal Wednesday at Swope Soccer Village.

Megan Hennemann, left, Reese Barber and Genevieve Lipe celebrate St. Vincent's first goal against New Covenant Academy by Hennemann in the 52nd mintue Wednesday, May 29, 2019, at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City, Mo. The Indians scored three times in the second half to move to Thursday's final, 3-0.

Ryan Weaver ~ Special to the Southeast Missourian

The Indians will go for their third consecutive state championship at 4 p.m. Thursday against Duchesne.

"It kind of opened the gates, and that's what we thought would happen," Pistorio said of Barber's goal. "We had it on our offensive third nearly the entire first half. It's just missed opportunities. Their goalie, we knew coming in, was probably their biggest asset. We just weren't getting the quality shots we needed to. Getting that first one, you could see everyone [relax] and now let's play our game."

St. Vincent (16-7) had a shot 30 seconds into the game and finished with 13 in the first half. NCA (13-8) had zero. But thanks to six saves from Warriors goalkeeper Hannah Isbell and a couple of missed chances, the game remained scoreless at the break.

Pistorio wasn't discouraged, though.

"We were moving the ball great to feet, passing to our teammates, smart first touches, everything that you try to do as a team," the coach said. "It was just impressing on them, 'Listen, we're doing all the right things. Don't get frustrated.'"

The Indians' persistence paid off in the 52nd minute when Barber received a pass on the left wing from Megan Lipe cut onto her right foot and rifled a shot from the top of the penalty box past Isbell.

The Indians had struck first.

"It's very important because it kind of changes their mindset," St. Vincent senior midfielder Sara Kapp said of getting the first goal. "It gets in their head a little bit."

The second goal came in the 71st minute, and Barber was again involved, starting the move with a pass down the left wing. Genevieve Lipe's centering pass found Kalli Seabaugh at the top of the box. Seabaugh didn't panic, turning and ripping a shot into the left side of the net.

Anna Schwartz added the game's final tally in the 75th minute off an assist from Barber. St. Vincent ended up outshooting the Warriors 21-1. Isbell made eight saves, and Fayth Brewer had one in notching her sixth shutout of the season.

"I felt like we played a great game," Kapp said. "This whole season, we've been working on certain things each game. Our goal was balls to feet, balls to feet. I think we really set that up this game. They weren't many balls we kicked up there and hoped our forwards got."

Earlier this month, St. Vincent suffered a 5-0 loss to cross-town rival Perryville. Since then, the Indians have won six straight, outscoring their opponents 21-4.

"I asked them after the Perryville game, give me seven more games," Pistorio said. "I know some of you are thinking about summer. You're thinking about all the other things out there. Just give me a commitment of seven games. Now we've only got one more. Make it count."

The Indians will now go for their third consecutive state title in what will be the final high school game for six seniors, including captains Kapp, Seabaugh and Megan Hennemann.

"You don't want to come into your very last game of the season and phone it in and walk off with regrets," Pistorio said. "That's what I was telling the three captains over here. Tomorrow is it for them. They're not going on to play college ball. It might be the last time they touch a soccer ball.

"Come off that field without any regrets."

Editor's note: In an earlier version of this story, the St. Vincent player who scored the first goal was misidentified in a photo caption. It was Reese Barber. The Southeast Missourian regrets the error.