Girls soccer sectionals: Tigers outlast Arabians to win first title in three years

By RICHIE HALL
When the Fishers girls soccer team looks back on its 2018 Class 3A Sectional 8 championship, it can honestly say that the trophy was won the hard way.
The No. 9 Tigers had already won a penalty kick shootout with the host and No. 2-ranked Noblesville in Thursday’s semi-final, and that put them in Saturday’s final with Pendleton Heights. The Arabians played Fishers incredibly tough, taking the Tigers into overtime and back to – penalty kicks.
Fishers needed nine rounds in the shootout before finally prevailing 8-7. The Tigers thus won their first sectional since 2015 and will advance to next Saturday’s Logansport regional.
“There’s a lot of composure on this team and a lot of belief in one another,” said Fishers coach Ben Beasley. “It’s taken everything we had to get by a Pendleton team that’s been working hard for three years.”
The game was scoreless in the first half and for the majority of the second half. It was the Arabians that got the first goal of the game, when Taylor Stone put the ball in the right side of the net with 14:12 left. Kennedy Carrithers made the assist.
The Tigers got the equalizer with 5:33 left in the half, when Delaney Whelan crossed the ball over to Maya Turner inside the goal box. Turner was able to touch it into the net.
“We know we’re going to have to grind out every win,” said Beasley. “We have the players that can do it. They stepped up. I think the Noblesville game took a lot out of us and it was evident on the field. And we knew that. We knew that going in. But the girls found a way.”
After that, there was no score in the remainder of regulation, nor in both overtime periods. That sent the game to the shootout, where there would ultimately be nine rounds of penalty kicks. Fishers converted eight of its nine kicks, with Samantha Bird making the kick to put the Tigers up 8-7. Kaitlyn Hicks then blocked the Arabians’ final attempt.
“It’s a quality program, quality players,” said Beasley of Pendleton. “It’s one of those teams that you walk off and you’re happy you won, but you feel for how hard they worked in that game. Want to root for a team like that.”
Fishers is now 11-3-1 for the season. The Tigers will play Harrison in the second semi-final of the Logansport regional at noon, this after the first (10 a.m.) semi-final between No. 7 Homestead and No. 14 Fort Wayne Carroll.

Fishers won its first girls soccer sectional since 2015 Saturday at Noblesville. The Tigers outlasted Pendleton Heights in a penalty kick shootout 8-7, and qualified for next Saturday’s Logansport regional. (Kent Graham)

Fishers’ Maya Turner (11) reacts after scoring a goal late in the second half that tied the game. Pictured at right is Delaney Whelan (7), who made the assist. (Kent Graham)