Grace finally gets its region crown

Arkansas-SEMO Live Blog

Thursday night, the Grace Academy girls' soccer team was relentless. The Lady Golden Eagles never stopped attacking. Never stopped firing shots from all angles.

And they got the outcome they'd been seeking for years.

The Lady Golden Eagles received second-half goals from Holly Badger and Emily Clark and won the Region 3-A/AA championship with a 2-0 defeat of Boyd-Buchanan. The win gives Grace (14-5) a chance to host a state sectional match Saturday against Chattanooga Christian (10-6-4). The Lady Bucs (13-6-2) will visit Notre Dame (9-5-4).

Boyd-Buchanan, which had won the two previous 2014 meetings against Grace, had its collective back against the wall from the outset Thursday. The Lady Golden Eagles, who had been region runners-up in four straight seasons, came out with a ferocious attack that never let down.

It didn't lend immediate results, but midway through the second half, Badger scored on a free kickafter a handball just outside the box.

"We did a few things that could have hurt us tonight, but we made up for a lot of it by how composed we were," Grace coach Gretchen Hammel said. "The girls had each other's backs, and we played well."

Grace, which outshot Boyd-Buchanan 10-2 on goal, doubled its lead in the 72nd minute on a goal by Emily Clark, who moments before had chipped a shot that glanced off the crossbar.

"We were happy to get this win tonight, especially after the two losses to Boyd during the season," said Badger, a senior.

Boyd-Buchanan tried to create some opportunities in the counterattack, but it was a slow process for the Lady Bucs, who won their first-ever district championship a week ago and have tied the school record for wins in a season (13).

"They just wanted it more than we did," Boyd-Buchanan coach Todd Ledbetter said. "Their first goal hurt us; we were doing well and were countering at first, but that first goal let the wind out of our sails. You can only do so much for so long, but we have nothing to be ashamed of. We just have to go back to practice and get ready for Saturday."

Ana LaFontaine finished with eight saves, while Grace keeper Rachel Beard had two.

Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.

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