The third seeded CHS girls soccer team saw its season end in heartbreaking fashion Oct. 31 when they lost a penalty kick shootout to number two seed B-CC.

100 minutes of back-and-forth play couldn’t decide a winner between the two teams after they traded goals midway through the second half.

After a sloppy start to the match, B-CC’s Shelby Fountain broke a scoreless tie with 19 minutes left to play after beautiful passing in the midfield set her up with a clear angle towards the goal. Once she gathered herself, Fountain blasted a low shot past CHS goalkeeper senior Riley Albert and into the corner of the net.  

Barely a minute passed before the Bulldogs found an equalizer. A brilliant through-ball led junior Eden Max to a one-on-one situation with the B-CC goalkeeper, and Max converted the opportunity expertly by taking the correct angle around the keeper for the easy finish.  

As the game entered overtime, B-CC seized the offensive initiative and threatened to end the match with a “golden goal,” a phrase which comes from a Maryland high school soccer rule stating that any goal in overtime instantly ends the game. The Barons’ chances mounted as a shot from distance struck the crossbar and a free kick seemingly destined for the top corner was saved by Albert at full stretch. The CHS back four, including seniors Molly Olcott and Bergan Babrowicz, was sturdy throughout the game and parried all of B-CC’s crosses, which ensured the game would come down to a penalty kick (PK) shootout.

In the PK shootout, the Barons left the Bulldogs with little margin for error. B-CC’s first three shooters showed great composure and converted their PK attempts, while junior Eleni Triantis was the only CHS player of the first three to make their shot. A save by Albert gave the Bulldogs a chance to mathematically get back in the shootout, but the Barons emerged victorious, 4-2.

For the Bulldogs, this loss is certainly hard to swallow. Despite playing a much stronger game than their regular season showing against B-CC (which they lost 2-0), CHS found themselves defending too often and were significantly out-possessed. Nonetheless, the Bulldogs should be proud of the heart and effort that they showed.