Nevermind having to replace 13 seniors, their top three goal scorers, top defenders, keeper and their head coach.
Highlands girls soccer team is back on top of the 9th Region.
After a hard fought battle between both sides, Highlands punched their ticket to the state tournament after defeating Conner 1-0 in the 9th Region Championship on Saturday in Hebron.
With all the turnover, the Bluebirds were a bit of an unknown entering the season.
“I didn’t really know what to expect coming into the first week of the season,” Highlands first-year head coach Kelsey Etherton said. “Coming into the program last minute, I didn’t know we were going to come away with a regional championship. Second week in, I absolutely did.”
Just before the kickoff of the 2024 season, Etherton replaced former head coach Chris Norris who decided to step down at the last minute.
“If we didn’t have her (Etherton), I don’t know where we’d be as a team right now,” senior defender Kendall Graves said.
With all eyes on the opportunity at hand, both teams knew it’d be a dog fight. Conner entered the match as the fifth-ranked team in the state, posting 20 shutouts while Highlands wasn’t too shabby with 14 of their own. Make it 15 now.
The two met three weeks ago in which the Cougars defeated the Bluebirds 2-0 on the same field.
Both teams traded possession through their own styles of play in the first half. While the Cougars displayed a direct offensive approach, the Bluebirds possession oriented attack kept the Conner defensive line on their heels.
The scoreline was held even up until the 28th minute when the Bluebirds were able to do something only five other teams had successfully done against the Cougars all season. A crafty move by Bluebird freshman Hope Darnell forced a game-changing penalty decision in the box.
Graves, both the team’s captain and defensive anchor, stepped up to the spot and smashed it into the back of the net to give Highlands a crucial first half lead. To maintain their advantage, that would mean holding off a Conner program who had only been held scoreless once through 25 games.
“I told the girls at the half to pretend like the score was 0-0,” Etherton said. “The game could change in a split second and we knew there was still a lot of work left to do for us to win it.”
Expecting Conner to come out of the half with an increased level of intensity, Highlands kept up their offensive pressure but adjusted to a defensive-minded attack. Limiting the Cougars’ ability to play balls through, the Bluebirds dropped six players into their own defensive half at times.
Photo slideshow below, provided by Charles Bolton:
“We had opportunities in this game,” Conner head coach Michael Hughes said. “We played a fairly good game, especially in the second half. Today, we just couldn’t get the ball to bounce our way.”
Everytime Conner fought their way back into an opportunity, a Highlands defender was there to limit the pressure. With the clock on their side, Highlands never took their foot off the gas.
Inside the final 10 minutes of play, Conner was unable to get a clean shot on goal. As the final minute ticked away, realization set in for the Cougar’s as their historic season had come to an end.
Ending arguably the program’s most successful season to date, Conner finished 22-3-1 on the year which was notably the most wins of any team in the state. The Cougars had four seniors who include goalkeeper Ally Welch who allowed just seven goals and the team’s leading scorer Milana Arevalo who had 11 goals on the year.
“It’s hard to sum up how accomplished this team was,” Hughes said. “I’ve coached for a very long time and I can honestly say this is one of the most committed and unified teams I’ve ever been a part of. Losing on a penalty kick is a tough way to go but it doesn’t take away anything we did this year.”
Advancing to the state tournament, Highlands has turned the page since coming up short against Conner in their last meeting. From four straight scoreless matches in which they went 0-2-2, the Bluebirds have now scored 23 goals during a six-game winning streak, outscoring the opponent 23-1 in that stretch.
“When I said we were saving goals for the post-season last month, we weren’t joking,” Etherton said. “These girls have given us everything all year, and they truly have come together at the right time. We’re not done yet.”
Highlands will face Lexington Catholic, the winners of the 11th region, at home on either Monday or Tuesday night.
All Region Team: Newport Central Catholic- Brooklyn Cole, Cooper- Amanda Collins, St. Henry- Gabrielle Pitsic, Holy Cross- Suzette Klais, Notre Dame- Julia Stegman, Megan McGraw, Dixie Heights- Abby Parsons, Keeley Polk, Conner- Ally Welch, Milana Arevalo, Ava Schier, Highlands- Bailee Class, Natalie Hinegardner, Gabby Simons, MVP Kendall Graves