By Joe Lanane
For The Herald Bulletin
MUNCIE — It was the moment that almost never came for Highland senior Shelbie Oakley.
After 94 minutes of scoreless play in Tuesday’s sectional quarterfinal against city rival Anderson, the Scots defender was the school’s final kicker selected to break a 1-1 penalty kickoff tie. It was an opportunity coach Kyle Davy said almost never happened, but at the last minute he said he chose Oakley to be the fifth — and ultimately decisive — kicker.
Oakley’s kick sailed smoothly over the head of Anderson’s Hannah Harrison and into the net to clinch the 2-1 penalty kick advantage, breaking the scoreless tie to advance Highland to Thursday’s sectional semifinal against Delta.
“I’ve never scored a goal my whole life, never — I have always been on defense,” Oakley said afterward, still shaking from excitement and low temperatures. “It’s my senior year, and it’s the last Anderson game, so I was real excited.”
Davy admitted being indecisive over who would kick fifth after Oakley — by her own admission — showed mixed results in practice earlier this week. In the end, however, Davy said he had all the confidence in Oakley after Anderson’s Ashley Gravely recorded the Indians’ lone penalty kick to even the score.
“In practice, she made a few and she missed a few, so she was on the edge there,” Davy said. “We decided to put her in because she’s a senior and we knew she’d come through.”
After breaking the scoreless tie, Davy called the dramatic finish the program’s “best win by far” during his three-year tenure at Highland. The Scots were first to strike on the five-player penalty kickoff, with Highland’s No. 4 kicker Heather Kopp recording the match’s first score.
Gravely responded with a line drive into the back left corner of the net past Highland’s Tori Brown. Rather than rely on a second set of penalty kicks, Oakley sealed the win and the two-hour, 15-minute match with the decisive goal.
It was nothing less than a huge turnaround for the Scots, who were dominated by the Indians offense much of the second half and overtime. Anderson retained possession deep in Highland’s territory much of that time, but was unable to squeak past Brown.
“We haven’t been able to find the net when we control the games like that,” said Anderson coach Randy Harrison. “We’ve been in a lot of close games, and we just haven’t been able to finish and it kind of showed tonight.”
Anderson’s frustrations offensively carried into the extra play, with the Indians coming away empty-handed on several key opportunities. It was a scenario Davy said he envisioned after his team’s strong defensive play kept the Scots alive during the one-sided battle.
“Right when the game started I knew this was probably going to come down to PKs,” Davy said, admitting penalty kicks are not typically his team’s strong suit but still welcomed the challenge. “I’m glad it came to PKs, because it made it exciting.”
Anderson’s Marissa Woschitz recorded the most shots on goal, but it was her penalty kick, the Indians’ third attempt, that clanged against the left sidebar to prevent an early Indians advantage.
Harrison said a lot of factors added to the intensity of an already high-spirited contest.
“You throw in the pressure of the city rivalry and the sectional, that goal shrinks a lot,” Harrison said. “I am kind of in disbelief right now that our girls didn’t perform as we’ve been working on all year, but that’s part of the game.”
He wished the Scots luck in their sectional semifinal Thursday against Delta, a team Highland fell short against in a 2-1 defeat earlier in the season.
“We had a few girls get tired there toward the end, so hopefully we’ll be able to recoup tomorrow and come back Thursday with the win,” Davy said.
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