Sandy • For the Corner Canyon High girls soccer team, the message going into Friday’s 5A state championship game against Murray was simple.
“We said in the locker room, ‘Anything except a win is a failure,’” Chargers head coach Krissa Reinbold said of the team’s mindset before the game.
When the final whistle sounded, the Chargers were not failures. They scored two goals in the first 14 minutes of play — within two minutes of each other — to beat the Murray Spartans 2-1 and claim the 5A state title.
“I was totally just high in the clouds,” Chargers keeper Haleigh Rasmussen said she thought when she realized her team won the title. “I was so happy for our team and what we were able to accomplish.”
Megan Astle and Maryn Granger each found the back of the net for the Chargers in the first half. Astle scored Corner Canyon’s firs goal on a penalty kick in the 13th minute after Kayla Milford was fouled in the box.
Reinbold said the first goal allowed Corner Canyon to set the tone for her team.
“I think it relaxed us a little — almost too much, a little bit,” Reinbold said. “But it relaxed us in that it just got those nerves out of the way so that way they could settle in and play better soccer.”
A well-placed corner kick by Kenli Coon in the 14th minute gave Ganger the opportunity to head in a goal for a 2-0 lead.
But Murray cut its deficit in half a few minutes later. Hannah Lee passed to Sydney Wilcken, who scored to make Corner Canyon’s lead 2-1 in the 18th minute.
The Chargers stifled the Spartans on defense the rest of the the way, clearing the ball out of the attacking third in key moments and executing tackles in the midfield to give them more opportunities to score.
