SJC wins girls soccer thriller

SJC wins girls soccer thriller
Posted By Ed O'Leary
Posted -20 sec ago

Laura Flood couldn't believe her eyes when the ball landed in the perfect place for her to take a shot with three minutes remaining in the Brant County high school girls soccer championship game late Friday afternoon at John Wright Soccer Fields.

"I'm just somewhat shocked that I got it in," said the startled Grade 12 student, who scored to give the St. John's College Green Eagles a 2-1 victory over the Brantford Collegiate Institute Mustangs.

It was the 14th Brant County championship in 16 years for the Eagles.

St. John's and BCI advance to the Central Western Ontario Secondary Schools Association's AAA championships at Kitchener's Budd Park on Tuesday and Thursday.

The Eagles and the Mustangs are entered in separate pools for round-robin action but they will each play their first games Tuesday at 10 a.m.

Kelly VanLeeuwen, a Grade 9 student who came on as a substitute in the second half, made the key pass to Flood, who was positioned about three yards from the goal-line but towards the far side of the goal.

VanLeeuwen, better known for her basketball abilities, floated the pass over the BCI defenders and the head of Eagles' star forward Jessica Del Signore, who attracted defensive attention on the play. Flood quickly booted the ball high into the far corner of the goal and well out of the reach of BCI goalkeeper Erika Gardiner, who had robbed Flood of a goal minutes earlier and made strong saves on shots by Del Signore and Flood around the 10-minute mark of the second half.

"It was the perfect setup," Flood said of VanLeeuwen's pass.

"That was definitely the best team to play in the championship game. We deserved that win. We worked hard for it."

Flood is hoping the Eagles qualify for the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations championships.

"I think we can do just as well (at CWOSSA) as we did last year and make it all the way to OFSAA," she said. "It will be my third year at OFSAA, Grade 9, Grade 11 and this year."