Why J.L. Mann girls soccer went with freshman goalie Emory Jennings to win Upper State over Mauldin
J.L. Mann girls soccer coach Anastasios Georgopoulos figured his goalkeeper situation would work itself out.
It never did.
Sophomore Mary Kate Bishop and freshman Emory Jennings shared time almost equally and never allowed a goal in eight region games. There were some tight ones, too, three 1-0 finals and a scoreless tie that came down to penalty kicks. Bishop and Jennings split those, too.
Problem: Georgopoulos wanted to lean on one keeper for the playoffs.
He picked Jennings, and she delivered her third straight postseason shutout Wednesday night as J.L. Mann beat Mauldin, 1-0, at Slaton Field to win the high school Class AAAAA Upper State. Trinity Oglesby scored in the first three minutes for the Patriots, and it turned out to be plenty.
“We try to go with instinct,” Georgopoulos said, “and Emory was it, pretty much.”
Mann (18-2-1) will play for the state championship at 5:30 p.m. Friday against Wando (22-2-1) at Irmo High School. The Patriots won titles in 2015 and 2017-19 under Georgopoulos.
SPRING PLAYOFFS: Follow here for all the Greenville area 2023 high school spring sports schedules, scores
DANGEROUS DUO: Why dangerous duo makes Riverside 'unstoppable' for high school boys soccer state final
TENNIS CHAMPIONS: J.L. Mann boys tennis dominates Summerville, wins second straight high school state title
Goalkeeper competition is friendly
Mauldin (15-4-3) allowed only two goals in three games this season against Mann and lost them all, including that rainy scoreless tie that went to the last penalty kick. Jennings was at the net at the end.
She was there again when this celebration began, further away from it at first because the game ended with all the action at the other side of the field. It took her a while to get to the group hug, but she was on a sprint to get there.
“I just do my best in warm-ups and try to bring intensity,” Jennings said. “Whatever happens is in his control and I’m good with that. I love MK. She’s a great goalie.”
MK is good with that, too.
“Of course,” Bishop said. “We’re all on the same team. She deserves to be out there.”
Game-winning early goal came with some dispute
Oglesby’s goal didn’t come without some questioning from the Mauldin side.
The Mavericks wanted a hand-ball penalty on Oglesby. As she gained control of the ball, it bounced up and hit her thigh-high, awfully close to where she had her right hand tucked to her body.
“I didn’t feel anything on my hand,” Oglesby said. “The ball was in the air, and I tried to keep my foot up and the ball hit me in the thigh.”
Game-winner. It was just 2:18 into the game, but with a defense like J.L. Mann's, that was the winner, and if you arrived a little late, you missed it.
“We plan to score early,” Oglesby said. “We just wanted to get it out of the way and then try to get as many points as possible. … It’s better to strike fast and early rather than later on.”
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: J.L. Mann High School girls soccer beats Mauldin for Upper State title
