Southeast wins in shootout

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BY BRENT C. WAGNER / Lincoln Journal Star

OMAHA — This goalkeeper stuff seems simple enough.

Here’s what Lincoln Southeast keeper Emily Dierks taught Wednesday: When the ball is kicked at you, stop it. And when your teammates come running toward you, it’s time to celebrate.

Dierks stopped the kick that mattered — the final shot of a shootout — clinching the Knights’ 2-1 victory against Omaha Marian in the first round of the Class A Girls State High School Soccer Tournament at Morrison Stadium.

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That was part of an exciting first day of the tournament, which included another overtime game,  between Lincoln East and Omaha Westside.

Dierks dove to her right and batted away a penalty kick by Marian’s Monica Bosilijevac. Had that shot gone in, the match would have been extended to a sudden-death format. Instead, Southeast won the shootout 3-2.

Apparently, the parents on the edge of their seats were keeping track of things better than Dierks. She wasn’t aware the fate of her team would be determined by her ability to stop one last penalty kick.

“I didn’t know that was it until I saw everybody running at me,” Dierks said. “I was like, ‘Oh, I guess we won.’”

Minutes later, she had a better grasp of the magnitude of the moment.

“It was probably the best feeling in the world to me, but maybe I’m too passionate about it,” Dierks said.

Southeast’s win was a pretty big deal. For starters, the sixth-ranked Knights’ win against No. 3 Marian was an upset. Also, it ended Southeast’s seven-game losing streak in the state tournament dating back to 2000.

This year, Southeast took a different approach. The Knights weren’t going to be satisfied with just getting here.

“Getting to state is great,” Southeast junior Brieanna Everett said. “But we really wanted to win this year.”

Everett’s team-leading 16th goal of the season was Southeast’s only goal during regulation.

Lindsey Johnston, Alison Bushnell and Kailey Blazek made penalty kicks for Southeast in the shootout.

Everett scored in the 50th minute. She dribbled to her left among traffic, and found an open net from 15 yards.

A different player may have not shown the patience that Everett did, Southeast coach Duane Johnson said, and not worked for a better-percentage shot.

“She’s just got such a quick shot that sometimes they’re not ready for it, and I’m not sure the Marian keeper was ready for that one,” Johnson said.

It appeared as if Southeast would win in regulation, until the Crusaders’ Tessa McKeone scored with five minutes to go in the second half.

Dierks made the initial save, but it slipped away and McKeone tapped the ball in. The ball crept across the goal line to tie the game.

A big difference were the Southeast defenders — Victoria Hartley, Johnston and Blazek — being able to slow a Marian offense that had plenty of weapons.

Southeast (14-3) had lost its only other shootout of the season.

“We practice shootouts all the time, and I tell the kids a state tournament game could come down to this, and it did,” Johnson said.

“Emily pushed that last one away, and it was just gratifying to win a game.”

Reach Brent C. Wagner at 473-7435 or bwagner@journalstar.com.