Cor Jesu Advances To State Soccer Championships With Late Antonacci Goal

Ever since the first day of spring practice back in February, the Cor Jesu Academy girls soccer team has ended every practice, game and team huddle with the same cheer.

Head coach Missy Bruno would bring the team into a huddle and shout the words “Get to...” and the team would follow with a collective whisper of the word “state.”

As the season went along, and the Chargers got closer to reaching their goal, Bruno told the team to get louder on their part of the cheer to signify how much closer they were to actually reaching the state championships.

And late Saturday night, after a thrilling 2-1 victory in a MSHSAA Class 3 state quarterfinal game against Pattonville, Bruno told her team they could shout it loud, because the Chargers are going to the state soccer championships in Kansas City Saturday.

“This is what we’ve talked about from day one,” Bruno said. “I think we’re all looking forward to making that trip up I-70 next week. Tonight was such a battle, no question. Pattonville’s a strong team with a lot of speed up top. We knew we had to do a lot of things well to win.”

And they needed a little bit help as well, or at least a fortunate overrule call late in the game, when Pattonville seemed to tie the score at 2 on a throw-in play with just over 11 minutes left in the game.

Pattonville senior Mikala McGhee, a three-sport star for the Pirates who will play basketball at Missouri State University next fall, fired a brilliantly-placed throw-in pass to the far corner of the Cor Jesu goal.

And somehow in the huge pile-up of bodies going for the ball, it wound up in the back of the net.

But after a short celebration by the Pattonville players, the game officials huddled together and ruled that the ball crossed the line on the throw without anyone touching it.

That’s not allowed, so the goal was disallowed, much to the dismay of the Pattonville players and head coach Tom Iffrig.

“I just feel so bad for our girls,” Iffrig said. “They played so hard, and it looked like a good play. I know that ball hit somebody. It might have been one of our girls, or maybe one of theirs, but the ball hit somebody.

“I just don’t know how the linesman, who was some 50 yards away, could make that call, while the referee was right there and didn’t make a call at all.”

Cor Jesu had gotten the lead just minutes earlier, when senior Jenn Miller somehow beat a double-team and found teammate Erin McGauley streaking down the right sideline.

McGauley then lifted a crossing pass through the box that found junior Jenny Antonacci, who smacked home a volley that sent the Charger faithful into a frenzy and gave Cor Jesu a 2-1 lead.

“Erin made the run down the right side, and made a perfect cross,” Antonacci said. “I was lucky enough to put it in. It just felt amazing.”

Pattonville nearly tied the score again with a point-blank chance in the final two minutes, but Cor Jesu goalkeeper Sam Bersett was in the right spot at the right time to corral a shot right at her, and then help the Chargers run out the clock for the win. 

Cor Jesu got its first goal from sophomore Mia Zanaboni on another great play made by Miller, while Pattonville got its lone score from Sammie Bauer, who found the ball after a huge player scramble following another deft McGhee throw-in.

The Pirates finished their year with a 21-6 record, while 21-2 Cor Jesu will play Springfield Glendale in the state semifinals Friday night at Blue Springs South High School in Kansas City.

The winner of that contest would then play the winner of the other semifinal between St. Joseph’s Academy and Lee’s Summit North, in the Class 3 state championship game, June 2, at 6 p.m.

“We’re excited,” Bruno said. “This has been our goal all year long.”