On October 15, 2012, the Manual girls soccer team got eliminated by Male in the regional tournament. The final score after regulation and two overtimes of the regional quarterfinal match up was 1-1. That sent the game into penalty kicks, which Male eventually won.

The first goal came just six minutes into the game when Male’s April Floden (12) found the back of the net. Male would remain up 1-0 for the remainder of the first half. However, Manual’s team stayed positive. ” At first I was extremely discouraged but I new that we would score a goal at some point to make a comeback,” said Emily Wilbar (11).

A comeback is just what Manual came up with in the second half. Manual tied up the game eight minutes into the second half when Natalie Shields (12) scored from long range. “It was my first goal of the season and it couldn’t have come at a better time,” said Shields. Shields felt the energy of the team increased after her goal and thought it would lead to more goals for the team. However, it would be the final goal of the game. After regulation, the game was tied 1-1.

The game then went into two ten minute overtimes where neither team could find a way to score the winning goal. That is when the two teams had to participate in one of the most nerve wracking things in sports, penalty kicks.

After it was all said and done, Male won the shootout and eliminated Manual from the tournament. “It was devastating, none of us could believe we were eliminated by Male two years in a row.  It was the last thing we thought would happen so it really hurt when that ended our season,” said senior Natalie Shields.