'It means everything': Ashley girls soccer claims NCHSAA 4A East regional final over Hoggard
For the second consecutive season, the Ashley girls soccer team will play in a state championship.
The Screaming Eagles (23-0-2) survived one of their most physical games of the season, downing cross-town rival Hoggard 2-1 in the NCHSAA 4A East regional championship Tuesday.
"It means everything to these kids," Ashley coach Erik Graf said of the win. "The goal has always been to go back to the state championship and win it. Anything short of that was gonna be a disappointment."
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After more than 30 minutes without a score, Ashley junior Karina Peat lifted a perfectly weighted ball into the box before Savannah Manset fired a powerful header into the upper left corner of the net to break the deadlock.
"It kind of blurs out a little bit," Manset said of her goal. "When the ball went in, I was just like, 'Oh my gosh, thank goodness' because it was definitely getting stressful out there 0-0."
Ashley opened up the second half with a second goal as a pass across goal landed at the feet of sophomore Kieran Bradley, who punched in the shot against an out-of-position Hoggard goalie.
Hoggard kept hopes alive as Brielle Acher scored with less than eight minutes to play. The Vikings couldn't mount a late comeback, however, as Ashley played out the remaining clock.
The win sends top-seeded Ashley to its second state title game in two years. The Screaming Eagles narrowly fell to Ardrey Kell 3-2 in last spring's state championship game.
"It motivates us so much because we don't want to go back and feel the feeling of losing and being so close," Manset said of last season's state championship loss. "We want to come out and be there. I feel like we've worked so hard this season.
Ashley keeper Morgan Tucker stopped two promising Hoggard shots in the first half. Ashley star Karina Peat slipped and took a hard fall, landing on her hand in the second half. The junior left the game in a sling.
No. 11-seeded Hoggard finishes the season 20-4-2
Ashley will face Marvin Ridge in the 4A state championship in Matthews this weekend.
"This is what they wanted to do," Graf said of reaching a state championship. "This was their goal, this is why they trained so hard. I've never had a team that works like this team and it's paying off for them."
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Ashley girls soccer bests Hoggard in NCHSAA 4A East regional championship
