HUNTSVILLE — All season long, Scott High senior Dara Stanley has yearned for an opportunity to play offense, but her team has needed her more on defense.
On Tuesday, she got her chance — and she saved the day.
Stanley scored a hat trick to lead Scott High’s come-from-behind win over Loudon in the District 5-AA semifinals, with three goals down the stretch in the game.
In an elimination game, Scott High trailed 2-0 with just 20 minutes to play before finally beginning to find some rhythm. Stanley scored on a follow-up to get the Lady Highlanders on the board, then added a second goal in similar fashion with five minutes left in regulation to tie the game.
Stanley then delivered the game-winner midway through the second overtime period.
“I’ve never had qualms about playing Dara on offense,” Scott High coach Eric Henry said. “I know what a great dribbler she is and what a great finisher she is. She knows what to do with the ball when she gets it.”
The win earns Scott High an opportunity to host a district championship match for just the second time in school history. But for the longest time on Tuesday, it didn’t look like Thursday’s game would happen.
“This was a trap game,” Henry said. “I think that’s a common term when you’ve had a good season, you’ve beaten a team handedly, 4-0, just 12 or 14 days ago. You just come out and you’re flat.”
Scott controlled possession early in the game but didn’t capitalize on opportunities in front of the goal. Later, Loudon managed to get a goal on the board with only a minute remaining in the first half, and led 1-0 at the intermission.
“Sam (Harrison) is a good coach. He had his defenders in the right places. He had them tight across the box,” Henry said. “And we had trouble capitalizing. Katie Tucker was in front of the goal with nobody around, Zoey (Terry) had two shots in front of the box with nobody around and they both pushed them. They’re just sophomores, but I called them out at the half along with everybody else. They simply did not capitalize on the opportunities they had in the first half.”
Henry expected a tight game, despite the Lady Highlanders’ success against Loudon earlier in the season.
“I reminded the girls before the game, they’re in the same boat you are. They want to win as much as you guys do. You can’t come out flat. And we were flat.
“I told them at halftime, you’re playing with no heart, no spine, no want-to,” Henry added. “But we adjusted and did better.”
Thursday’s game will be against Kingston, which defeated Anderson County 2-1 on Tuesday. The 6:30 p.m. game at Highlander Stadium will be a rubber-match. Kingston defeated Scott 1-0 early in the season, and the Lady Highlanders defeated the Yellow Jackets 5-4 in a shoot-out at the conclusion of an overtime game to win the regular season district title.
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October 14, 2020 at 09:33AM
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Scott comes from behind to advance to district title game - Independent Herald
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