Unlucky again: Lourdes soccer can’t find the mark in second consecutive state final loss
Some days, the soccer gods just aren’t on your side.
Despite controlling the ball most of the game and enjoying many more scoring chances while limiting their opponent to virtually none, it didn’t matter for the Lourdes Academy soccer team.
In the end, it’s all about the ball finding the back of the net. And that’s what the Bobcats could not do on Friday afternoon. The net result was a frustrating 1-0 loss to Neptune Beach Fletcher in the Class 6A state championship game at Spec Martin Stadium.
For the third time in the last five years, the Bobcats have had to settle for runner-up medals including last year’s equally heartbreaking penalty kick loss to Venice. Lourdes won state titles in 2018 and 2020.
It marked the first ever state title for a Fletcher program that was making only its second state final appearance in program history, the only other being a lopsided loss to St. Thomas Aquinas in 1998.
“At the end of the day, congratulations to Fletcher, they’re a great team as well and fought hard to get here and just made one more play than we did,” said first-year Lourdes coach David Fique. “When it comes down to last week (2-1 semifinal win over Land O’ Lakes) and today, our focus was to just try and do everything we could to find the back of the net and it just didn’t happen today and it pretty much stinks.”
Fique had to watch as his girls, after a sluggish start in the game’s first 20 minutes, eventually started to pick up the pace and create some good scoring chances. Meanwhile the Lourdes defense was pretty tight all day long as the Senators (18-5-2), up until the second half water break, had recorded just one official shot on goal.
It was the second one that broke the hearts of the Lourdes faithful. Just two minutes later, at the 18-minute mark, the only defensive mistake of the game proved costly as a high pass down the middle found Angelina Madera one-on-one with Lourdes keeper Gabriella Paredes. Madera barely beat her to the ball and then toe-kicked a high shot over her head and the ball trickled into the net.
“It was quick in the moment and it just happened so fast,” Paredes said. “The ball came in quick – she came at me quick and I actually thought she might’ve been offsides. I don’t know how it got through me but it did.”
The Bobcats, having already been frustrated by two great scoring chances in which the ball bounced off the right post both times, really turned the heat up on the Fletcher defense and keeper Taylor Sweat, peppering the goal with numerous chances.
The best of those came with 13 minutes left when Olivia Borroto - much the same way Madera did - broke free in a one-on-one behind all defenders.
Just as she right-footed a liner towards the net, Sweat charged at her and reached out with her right leg to get a piece of the ball and deflect it away. Lourdes finished the day with a 14-3 advantage in shots on goal.
There was also the matter of what the Lourdes sideline felt like was a hand ball inside the box by Fletcher with slightly more than 10 minutes left to play that would’ve warranted a penalty kick. But the whistle never blew.
“Incredibly frustrating all day,” Lourdes junior forward Coco Aguilar said. “We started kind of slow, kind of wanted to feel them out a little but eventually started to get more in the flow of things in the later part of the first half and carried that over to the second half.
“I’m only a junior and will get another shot to come back but I really wanted this for our seniors because this was their last game today and we really wanted to take them out on top. We know our way up here by now so hopefully we’ll get another shot next year.”
Fique added: “It looked like we might’ve had hand ball in the box and thought we might get a PK but there was no whistle so it is what is. I’m still proud of the girls and know our seniors are in shambles right now because they really wanted to go out on top. We had quite a bit of turnover from last year’s team so getting here was quite an accomplishment. Hopefully we can get back here again next year.”