Article authored by the Indianapolis Star
EVANSVILLE – Sometimes it takes one bounce to determine the winner.
The further you advance in the postseason, the smaller the window for mistakes. On Saturday, Cathedral's girls soccer team found itself on the favorable end of a big moment.
Jennifer Utzinger scored the lone goal of the game late in the first half, as the Irish defeated No. 1 Evansville Memorial, 1-0, in the Class 2A semistate at Bundrant Stadium on the campus of North High School.
It didn’t matter that the Tigers controlled possession for much of the contest. Cathedral took its shot and took down the defending state champions.
“This is a special group,” said Cathedral coach Marc Behringer. “They have been outstanding all year long. They really showed their heart and their guts.”
Cathedral’s plan was to make someone other than Memorial’s stars beat them. The Irish played a 5-2-2-1 for most of the contest with emphasis on Ryleigh Anslinger and Izzy Alexander.
The Tigers had a few chances in the first half but couldn’t find a way past Cathedral senior Sophia Saucerman. Then came the goal for the Irish.
On the attack, Utzinger found herself with the ball in the box. Instead of overcomplicating it, the senior took a shot at the net. The ball hit the hands of Memorial keeper Mallory Nussmeier but bounced behind her for a goal.
“Jennifer took a chance,” said Behringer. “Good things happen when you take a chance.”
The Irish nearly doubled up the Tigers early in the second half. But a Cathedral attacker was called offsides to negate a score.
Memorial kept on the offensive but didn’t find many chances against Saucerman. The best look came late in the contest on a corner kick from Mia Abushalback. After the ball was sent in, junior Elle Unfried got a head on the ball only for Saucerman to swat it away.
“We knew they were an incredible team going forward and attacking,” said Behringer. “If we could slow them down, we might have a shot in keeping the ball out. We have been defending pretty well all year. It was just one of those games. Sometimes, you take a chance.”
Cathedral will face South Bend St. Joseph in the Class 2A state championship game at IUPUI's Carroll Stadium next week.