ROUND ROCK, Texas – With less than three minutes remaining Saturday, Plano East forward Carolyn Polcari pounded a shot at the Southlake Carroll goal that nearly tied the score.
The attempt from 20 yards out hit the crossbar and deflected straight down. An inch or two lower, and the Class 5A state championship was destined for overtime.
"That's this game," Carroll coach Matt Colvin said. "It's a game of inches."
But Carroll's 2-1 victory at Round Rock ISD Stadium was by more than inches. Carroll controlled most of the game before Plano East, trying to be the first team in school history to win a state title in any sport, gave Carroll a scare late.
Very late.
With one second left, Polcari blasted a shot from 10 yards out that goalkeeper Caitlin Schneider pulled in to secure Carroll's first girls state soccer title.
Defender Leslie Shurtleff scored both of Carroll's goals. The second, a free kick into a stiff wind that floated 40 yards into the upper-left corner of the goal, gave Carroll a 2-0 lead with 24:42 left.
After that, Carroll (24-4-4) hung on as Plano East (24-4-3), with the wind at its back, got more aggressive on offense.
"Colvin talked about being a catalyst. Someone had to step up today," said Shurtleff, who was crying as she accepted the game's MVP award. "But we did it all together."
Especially on defense, which was Carroll's trademark this season. Carroll shut out 24 opponents, including five straight heading into the state final. It allowed Plano East very few scoring chances, particularly in the first half, when Carroll was playing with a stiff wind at its back.
"I knew it was going to be a tale of two halves with the wind," Colvin said.
Carroll didn't seem fazed by having the wind in its face in the first 15 minutes of the second half. It put together several good scoring chances before Shurtleff's shot into the wind – which looked like it was in slow motion – created a two-goal cushion.
Plano East didn't score until Polcari's free kick from 20 yards out with 19 minutes left. East had several more scoring chances before the frenetic final three minutes.
"I thought we came out a little bit sluggish and a little bit tight," Plano East coach Dawn Crow said. "As the game wore on, I think we showed more of our true character."
Crow said she wished she could come up with an excuse for why her team lost, but there was no need to. Carroll simply played its best game of the season at the best possible time.
"It was close to flawless," Colvin said.
