LEWISVILLE – With less than 15 minutes left, Coppell sophomore forward Emeline Holder cuts past two Flower Mound defenders and prepares to take a shot.
A shot at history.
On Tuesday, the Coppell girls soccer team emerged as Class 6A Division I Region I champions, 1-0, against the Flower Mound Jaguars at Max Goldsmith Stadium.
For the first time since their 2015 state championship run, Coppell is a regional champion and will advance to the Class 6A Division I semifinals. The Cowgirls play The Woodlands at 5 p.m. Friday at Birkelbach Field in Georgetown with the winner advancing to next week’s state championship match.
“They have battled through so many challenges, so much adversity, and so many things that came their way with grace and class,” Coppell coach Craig Able said.
By the end of the first half, the goalless match remained up in the air.
Coppell had been able to get two shots on goal while Flower Mound was able to get a single shot on goal, although none of these attempts came into fruition. Both teams had comparable amounts of possession.
The second half began in a similar fashion.
However, things started to change as Coppell put more pressure on Flower Mound’s high set defense, using long passes to create opportunities for breakaways.
With 14 minutes remaining, Holder sent off a shot from outside the Jaguar box, making it past the clutches of Flower Mound senior goalkeeper Addison Huber, giving Coppell a 1-0 lead.
“I knew we weren’t gonna have many opportunities, so when we did, I needed to go,” Holder said.
The Cowgirls finished the match defensively, making five clearances and preventing Flower Mound from further goal scoring opportunities by counterattacking.
(Marli Field)
Coppell junior midfielder Rachel Mathew was an instrumental part of the Cowgirl midfield, forcing turnovers and generating plays.
“We were controlling the game, and we did well with that,” Mathew said.
Able hopes that the region championship will give Coppell the confidence needed to go to state.
“I hope these girls are going to believe in themselves, they know how much we believe in them and they know with belief we can do anything, we can overcome any obstacle and take it head on.”
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