The Bombers survived penalties to beat St. Thomas More 2-1 in the final.
Jun. 4, 2016 7:00 a.m.
The L.V. Rogers girls soccer team has won a provincial championship.
An undefeated season concluded the only way it could for the L.V. Rogers girls soccer team — with a provincial championship.
The Bombers survived a penalty shootout to defeat Burnaby’s St. Thomas More Knights 2-1 in the gold-medal final at the BC High School Girls AA Soccer championships in Campbell River on Saturday.
Maya Ida scored the winning goal on the seventh shot of the shootout and Naomi Perkins scored in regulation as the Bombers won the provincial title for the first time since taking back-to-back championships in 1997 and 1998, respectively.
Perkins was named tournament MVP and awarded the Golden Boot for scoring 10 goals during the tournament.
It’s the second provincial title for Nelson’s high school in a week after the senior boys rugby team won gold on May 28.
LVR was under pressure early. The Knights scored on a free kick under 10 minutes into the game, putting the Bombers in the rare spot of having to play from behind.
The Bombers tied the game before the half was over on a corner kick. Laurel Halleran found Perkins, who fired the ball off her left foot to beat the opposing keeper in the far corner.
That set up a rollicking final 40 minutes after the break.
Bennett credited goalkeeper Hanna Quinn with keeping her team alive.
Quinn’s best save came in the dying minutes of regulation. The Knights strong midfield fired a shot that Quinn had to leap across the width of the goal to get a hand on and keep LVR alive .
Perkins, meanwhile, had to leave the game briefly after suffering a head injury fighting for a ball in the air. She was assessed by a physio on the sidelines and told she could return to play, which she did for extra time.
A scoreless extra time meant penalties for both teams. On the fifth shooter, the Knights had a chance to win but their shooter hit the crossbar. Two shooters later, Ida put the Bombers ahead on a shot to the top corner.
Quinn then guessed right, with a terrific save to deny the Knights and seal the Bombers’ title.