Double-OT goal propels Skyhawks

Nick Christensen

Friday, Feb. 13, 2004 | 9:53 a.m.

The plot was the same, but the script was a little different.

Two nights after a double-overtime 1-0 win against Green Valley, Silverado needed 116 minutes to defeat Coronado 1-0 in the Sunrise Region girls' soccer championship.

Tuesday's win came when Karla Lee knocked in a free kick to send the Gators packing, but Thursday's took a little more skill.

Lee was awarded a free kick from midfield with about four minutes to go in the second overtime after being pushed by a Coronado player. The kick sailed over both teams and into the net, scoring the Sunrise Region championship for the Skyhawks.

"The girl's determined. She said enough's enough," Silverado coach Vicki Mangione said of Lee, who has scored all of her teams goals this postseason. "The girls were exhausted, but they just dug it up from somewhere inside."

Silverado will play Bonanza Tuesday in the southern half of the state championship tournament, and Coronado will play Palo Verde. Reno's McQueen High School won the north's share of the title in November.

"The whole game, we were getting good shots," Coronado coach Greg Viscardo said. "Anytime a game goes into overtime, anything can happen."

But conventional wisdom said that Silverado would have had the disadvantage. The Skyhawks' Keri Krusyna came in at goal late in the second half after Rochelle Goulet went down with an injury and had to be carried off the field.

"Her hands were freezing," Mangione said. "She came in and made some incredible saves."

Across the way, Palo Verde's postseason surge continued with a 4-1 win against Bonanza for the Sunset Region championship.

Brittany Day, Britney Bostick, Karla Lambert and Marissa Lucero all scored for the Panthers.

"This team has immense heart and drive," Panthers coach Marc Hechter said. "They finished third in the tiebreaker, and we had to get past the big dog."

Hechter expects to let his team rest in preparation of Tuesday's matchup with Coronado.

"Team morale is high, but we have a good number of reserves who aren't getting a lot of action," Hechter said. "I think the reserves will see more time than they have been... this is a long endurance game. We're not physically injured, but we are physically hurt."