Girls Soccer Team Wins State Title With Perfect Record

When your opponent ties the game with less than a minute left in regulation, most teams crumble. The Stratford Eagles girls soccer team did the opposite.

On Tuesday night, Stratford defeated archrival FPD 4-3 in overtime to win the GIAA Class 4A State Championship and cap off a perfect 20-0 season. Junior Emma Lizotte buried the game-winner from 20 feet out with three minutes left in overtime.

The victory was extra sweet because of how it unfolded. Stratford had taken a 3-2 lead late in the game, seemingly sealing their perfect season. But FPD's Bowen Matthews headed in an equalizer with barely a minute remaining, sending the championship to overtime.

Head coach Kate Blankenship admitted her first thought was "uh oh." But she quickly regrouped, turned to her team, and told them to find a way to win again.

And they did exactly that. Lizotte got her chance when a nearby defender lost track of her positioning. She loaded up and belted a shot that streaked past the Vikings' keeper.

"When I took my touch, I knew it was gonna go in," Lizotte said after the game.

Why This Inspires

This Stratford team showed incredible resilience all night long. They fell behind early when FPD's Katelynn Jackson scored almost immediately after kickoff, shocking the crowd.

The Eagles answered with goals from freshman Hadley Stewart, senior Campbell McIntyre, eighth grader Maddie Biesterfeld, and eventually Lizotte's overtime heroics. They came back from deficits twice and never folded under pressure.

The game had extra drama too. A rain delay pushed kickoff to 9:30 p.m., and the weather turned the field into a slippery mud pit that made every play more difficult.

Both teams battled through the treacherous conditions in a game that was tied at 1-1, 2-2, and 3-3 at different points. Coach Blankenship said her team's character made the difference.

"The resilience of this group is unbelievable," she said while celebrating with her players. "You have to have the intangibles, that extra grit, the character and the maturity to look at a down-goal situation and know that we're still in it."

Even FPD coach Josh Trieste acknowledged the quality of the contest. "Whoever paid their $20 got their money's worth tonight," he said.

Twenty wins, zero losses, and one unforgettable championship game that showed what happens when talented athletes refuse to give up.