Boyd-Buchanan Advances To 5-A/AA Soccer Final

Lady Bucs Will Host Grace On Thursday For Title

  • Tuesday, October 13, 2015
  • Jaime Barrett

No one expected Tuesday night’s District 5-A/AA girls’ soccer semifinal match to be a high-scoring contest, but even when Boyd-Buchanan finally broke through with 15 minutes remaining, the Lady Bucs couldn’t relax.


Visiting McMinn Central gave Boyd-Buchanan several scares in the final 10 minutes, but the Lady Bucs held on for a 1-0 semifinal victory that gives them the right to host Thursday’s championship match against Grace Academy, which defeated Loudon 1-0 in its semifinal Tuesday. 


“I knew it was going to be a one-goal game either way,” Boyd-Buchanan coach Todd Ledbetter said.

“It was just a matter of who was going to get that break. Fortunately, we got it.”


Despite the pressure of playing in a match that could potentially end their season, Ledbetter said his team started out strong against a tough Lady Chargers team.


“I thought we started out really well,” he said. “We were high tempo, and I thought we had the right game plan. We were trying to spread their defense apart, and I think it was going well, but their intensity and physicality really disrupted our rhythm. We really struggled to find that final shot.”


Boyd-Buchanan also had to deal with the loss of starting center back Lindsey Hunkapiller early in the first half, and after both teams went into the half without a score, the Lady Bucs spent the break discussing their strategy and mentality.


“We were still not getting enough width,” Ledbetter said. “We also talked about our mental game, making sure our effort and energy were high. I think all the nerves were gone by the second half, so we just had to go out and play.”


The Lady Bucs had several dangerous chances in the second half, including one near-miss header, and finally built up a play that allowed them to break through on a shot by Emma Rogers with just over 15 minutes remaining.


“We got the ball wide, and it squirted back out to her up top,” Ledbetter said. “We had been getting some decent chances, and we finally executed properly, so she was able to finish.”


Boyd-Buchanan had a couple of opportunities to extend its lead in the final 10 minutes, but also had to fight off several of McMinn Central’s attempts at an equalizer. The Lady Chargers fought until the very end, when a Lady Bucs defender cleared their final shot seconds before the buzzer.


“As much as this game was about execution, we also never lost our focus mentally,” Ledbetter said. “Those last 10 minutes got really intense, but we stayed calm. Our defense just played fantastic. They kept their shape and stayed organized. None of our girls made any of those small mistakes. They were just very fundamental.”


With the win, Boyd-Buchanan improves to 11-5, and will host Grace on Thursday at 7 in the 5-A/AA championship match.


(E-mail Jaime Barrett at jaimenbarrett@gmail.com)
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