INDIANAPOLIS
Ellie Bigelow’s most impressive save of Thursday evening’s girls soccer sectional semifinal was probably her last one.
After shutting out Covenant Christian for 104 minutes, the Greenwood Christian junior goalkeeper kept the Cougars alive in the deciding round of penalty kicks by correctly reading Covenant senior forward Sophie Diaz’s mind. Diaz went for the top right corner and Bigelow leaped to make sure there was no space for her there, popping the ball above the crossbar and out of bounds.
But the game and GCA’s season ended before Bigelow could get a try at another save. Senior forward Katie Petersen’s shot hit the post on Greenwood Christian’s fourth penalty kick, and Covenant won 2-0 on penalty kicks after overtime ended with both teams still scoreless. Covenant Christian advances to play host Speedway in Saturday’s Class A sectional championship.
Bigelow was standing around the goal and started heading toward the bench when she collapsed to her knees. She was immediately surrounded by teammates who told her they couldn’t have possibly asked for more from her.
“She’s a phenomenal player,” Greenwood Christian coach Christina Hunter said. “I’m super excited to see what she does next year.”
Covenant Christian spent most of the game and almost all of the second half on the attack and in GCA’s end, but they could never take control because Bigelow wouldn’t let them. She had 33 saves on shots that would have been goals had she not been there. Some of them were spectacular, including a leaping save on a shot just below the crossbar with 14:20 to go in the second half that prevented Covenant Christian’s best chance to that point. Though 90 minutes and two seven-minute overtime periods, Bigelow kept a completely clean sheet.
Covenant Christian finally got to her in the penalty kick round, however. Bigelow stopped the first shot she faced against Covenant’s Kayla Dancler, but she guessed wrong on a shot by Covenant defender Ella Longoria for the Cougars’ first goal. Then sophomore defender Eleanor Mounts put one where Bigelow simply couldn’t reach.
“You can’t really know where they’re going,” Bigelow said. “You just have to go with it. The first one they made, I just kind of froze because I didn’t know where she was going. I’m pretty bummed, but I’m really proud of our girls and I’m proud of the way we played.”
Covenant Christian goalkeeper Aliah Minaya wasn’t tested nearly as much throughout the game, but she stopped all four of Greenwood’s PK attempts to preserve Covenant’s win.
GCA (6-12) still doesn’t have a win in a sectional playoff game, but the Cougars can build on Thursday’s performance. Just three seniors on the roster graduate from a team that hung in through an obstacle-ridden campaign that included a midseason coaching change.
“The girls’ ability to push forward is something I’ve never seen in coaching,” Hunter said. “And I’ve been doing it for 22 years.”
