CT Championships: Suffield Stunned By Bacon In Class M Girls Soccer

HARTFORD, CT — Late-game heroics from a freshman attacker saved the heavily favored Suffield High School Wildcats from a shocking regulation defeat in Saturday's Class M girls soccer title game.

But in the end, it wasn't enough as the heroics of a brilliant Bacon Academy goalkeeper, literally, won the state championship for the Colchester-based high school, their first.

After an exhausting 1-1 score in regulation, the 11-seeded Bobcats, coached by Matt Rafala, stunned a distraught, undefeated, and top-ranked Suffield, 11-10 in a marathon penalty shootout.

Scoring twice in the shootout, including the pressure-packed clinching kick, was goalkeeper Elizabeth Glover, whose boots and gloves overcame a relentless attack by the heavy favorites.

Needless to say, Glover was the game's MVP, the easiest of decisions by the CIAC.

The top-ranked Wildcats, led by David Sullivan, and 11th-seeded Bacon Academy started their CIAC Class M state championship battle amid cold, windy conditions at Trinity Health Stadium in Hartford.

Looking at a shocking defeat, Suffield managed to tie the game 1-1 with only 4 minutes left in the game as Bacon looked to win their first-ever state championship.

It ended a brilliant, 76-minute run of stellar Bacon defense, which used an early counterattack goal to keep a slim, 1-0 lead for most of the game.

With Suffield attacking relentlessly at the game's start, the momentum changed with one pass and a single kick.

Bacon scored first on sophomore Alyssa Blanchette's winner into the lower, left-hand side of the goal shortly after the halfway mark in the first half.

Staring into the setting sun, Blanchette took a pass by junior Maddie Tucker past the Suffield defense.

She then struck the ball well with her right foot, giving the Bobcats a 1-0 lead against the heavily favored Wildcats.

The score could have been double that had a prior, long-distance shot by Bacon gone in instead of hitting the crossbar, nearly going in.

Meanwhile, Glover kept her team ahead with poised play and defensive leadership.

Bacon's defense held firm for a 1-0 halftime lead, despite Suffield playing much of the game in the Bobcats' end.

In the second half, Bacon sagged into a defensive posture looking to counterattack if the opportunity arose, but opting to focus on preserving the lead primarily.

Suffield's push continued as the temperatures dropped and the sun called it a day.

With the game three-quarters finished, Bacon was still under heavy attack, but the defensive posture maintained the 1-0 lead and Suffield grew more and more desperate.

Satisfied with punting the ball back to Suffield's side whenever possible, Bacon kept all 11 in their zone, further frustrating the Wildcats.

With nearly 10 minutes to go, Suffield nearly equalized, but Glover tapped a very dangerous shot from distance over the crossbar.

Suffield nearly scored with 5 minutes to go as a pass slipped past multiple Suffield attackers in front of the Bacon goal. The lead was still 1-0.

Then, with 3 minutes left in the contest, the long-desired goal from Suffield happened and the game was tied 1-1.

Freshman Suffield attacker Hazel Qua took a pass from senior Kayleigh Mahannah and powered a shot from the right side of the goal past Glover and into the lower, left-hand side, causing Suffield's fans to erupt.

Qua's heroics meant extra time in the title game, with a now-exhausted Bacon being forced to defend further.

In the first 10-minute overtime period, Bacon didn't change its tactics, sagging back and counterattacking as Suffield came at them in waves.

The score remained 1-1 after the first OT period, with Bacon still staying in the game.

At the start of the second OT, Suffield continued their relentless pursuit of a go-ahead goal, which nearly came early in that period.

With 8 minutes 30 seconds left, Bacon's Glover saved a shot, but the ball rebounded to a Suffield attacker. No mind, Glover saved that one too.

After a couple of Bacon attacks, the Bobcats then defended well enough to send the game to penalty kicks, the cruelest way to decide a championship.

Each team suffered a series of hits and misses during the tense PK shootout, with the score tied 6-6 in penalties after 10 rounds each.

CIAC rules call for rounds of five every PK period, with no sudden death penalties, until a clear winner is apparent.

For this epic match, the third round of PKs in this overtime catfight was the difference, with Glover's heroics leading to the Bobcats' miracle on the turf over the powerful Wildcats of Suffield.

The top-ranked Suffield Wildcats entered Saturday's championship match with an undefeated, 16-0 record in the regular season, doing so in dominant fashion.

Meanwhile, the 11th-ranked Bacon Academy Bobcats enjoyed a stellar regular season, going 11-4 with one draw in regular season play.

While Bacon was playing in its first-ever state title game, Suffield had won six times, last winning in 2010.