NA Outlasts Mt. Lebanon In PK’s For WPIAL Quarterfinal Win
by Jared Barton
The North Allegheny girls’ soccer team stayed perfect after a tough matchup with Mt. Lebanon on Thursday night from Newman Stadium. The Tigers controlled the ball for most of the second half and two overtime frames and eventually outlasted the Blue Devils, 2-1, after a 3-0 penalty kick decision.
With 17:30 to go in the first half, North Allegheny was awarded a penalty kick for a foul near the Mt. Lebanon goal. Junior Rowan Barsotti blasted a shot that was tucked to the back left post of the goal to give NA the early advantage. The Blue Devils took advantage of a chance with 9:25 left in the half to even the score. Following a corner kick chance, Mt. Lebanon settled the ball in the offensive zone and junior Tillie Crown chipped a ball from 12 yards away that fluttered towards NA senior Natalie Rak. The goalie attempted to punch the ball into the air, but it rolled off her hand and into the back of the net.
North Allegheny had a bevy of chances in the second half, including a shot off the crossbar by senior Abigail Stager with less than 90 seconds to play in regulation. A minute later Stager had a nearside opportunity from short yardage but was stopped by Mt. Lebanon goalie Clare Cramer.
The chances continued to pile up in the overtime frames for the Tigers, but Mount Lebanon was up to the task to keep the game tied. North Allegheny went over 70 minutes without allowing a Mt. Lebanon offensive chance between the second half and overtimes.
NA started the penalty kick session and never looked back. Senior Ally Ruiz started the scoring with a shot in the left corner giving the Tigers the edge. Senior Jayden Coy nailed a line drive into the back of the net on the second PK, while fellow senior Libby Earley went bar down to give the Tigers a 3-0 PK advantage. Rak made a diving stop to her right on Mt. Lebanon sophomore Ava Heidenreich to ice the match. Senior Casey Gorman missed high on the first Blue Devil attempt and junior Mary McElhattan hit the crossbar on the second attempt.
North Allegheny tallied 39 shots with 15 on goal, while Mt. Lebanon only mustered six shots, two being on goal.
Barsotti earned Wright Automotive Player of the Game laurels for her goal and excellent play in the midfield.
North Allegheny advances to 19-0 on the season and will face No. 5 Canon-McMillan in the semifinals on Monday, at site and time to be determined. You can listen to the game live on the North Allegheny Sports Network.
Girls Soccer Summary vs. Mt. Lebanon, 10-26-23
| GAME SUMMARY | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SCORE BY HALVES | 1 | 2 | OT | 2OT | PK | FINAL | |
| North Allegheny | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | |
| Norwin | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
