HARTFORD, CT — Short-term history did not repeat itself in Sunday’s CIAC Class S girls soccer title game in Hartford’s Trinity Health Stadium.
Unlike Oct. 2, when The Morgan School of Clinton blew out Coginchaug Regional High School (Durham/Middlefield) 7-2, their championship rematch was a close one — very close.
After a 1-1 regular time deadlock took the contest to extra time, then penalties, it was Coginchaug that came out on top, 2-1, 4-3 in penalties, to win the program’s first-ever state title.
Despite that prior result, Coginchaug girls’ soccer coach Liam Isleib said his team embraced their underdog role, a mentality that was key to grinding out a championship.
“Our team was so young,” Isleib said. “We were the underdogs. They’ve never been here before.”
How young? The team’s goalkeeper and the game’s most valuable player, Annaliese Meisenkothen, is a freshman.
Heading into Sunday’s midday tilt at Hartford’s Trinity Health Stadium, both sides were looking to make history, as neither program had ever won a state title.
The fifth-seed Coginchaug came into the tournament with an 11-2-3 record.
Meanwhile, the seventh-seed The Morgan School (Clinton), led by coach Jon Harder, entered tournament play with a 10-3-3 record.
The game started slowly, with both sides testing each other’s defenses with no serious chances.
Then with 22 minutes left in the first half, Morgan senior Rachel Spaziano tapped in a rebound off Meisenkothen’s hands to put the Huskies up 1-0.
After the goal, action stabilized with both sides pushing forward in alternating runs, but ultimately no challenging either side’s goalkeepers.
Still, Morgan of Clinton held a 1-0 advantage at the half and was one goal closer to a state title than the Blue Devils.
When the second half began, Coginchaug pushed the ball more into the Morgan zone, keeping Husky goalkeeper Liliana Novicki active, but few chances were dangerous.
Then came the equalizer.
With about 24 minutes left in the second half, Coginchaug struck suddenly when sophomore Allison Booth took a pass from senior Sophie Farr and managed to push the ball past Novicki to even the score at 1-1.
Play picked up drastically and grew more physical, both sides pushing for a regulation game-winner that could lead to their program’s historic, first-ever championship.
Extra time loomed and that was confirmed after 80 minutes when both sides were deadlocked 1-1, with bonus soccer on the horizon.
On Morgan’s first possession in extra time, a one-on-one chance against Meisenkothen was done in by an extra heavy touch, leading to a low-percentage shot and a miss.
Coginchaug then had a very dangerous chance with about three minutes left in the first OT when an empty net shot past Morgan’s goalkeeper hit a defender and then bounced into the hands of Novicki.
Morgan had some dangerous attacks and set pieces in the Coginchaug zone, but wasn’t able to get the championship-winning finish that was needed.
After 80 minutes of regular time and 20 more minutes of extra time, the championship ws to be decided in the cruelest of fashions — penalty kicks.
That proved true, when Morgan’s fifth PK slammed the left-side goal post, ending the game and giving Coginchaug a 4-3 win in penalty kicks.
As the prior encounter proved, Isleib said Coginchaug could not defeat Morgan in a shootout.
Disciplined defense and opportunistic attacking was the way to go. “We had to keep the score low,” Isleib said after the game. “It was a lot of emotion, a lot of hard work.”
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