No one really likes a tie.
But both the Peoria Sunrise Mountain and Campo Verde girls soccer teams had reasons to smile after finishing 100 minutes of soccer deadlocked at 1-1 Tuesday night.
On the second to last day of the season, these squads played a primer for the playoffs.
"It definitely helps going into the playoffs," Sunrise Mountain coach Shauna Johnson said. "We knew that they're a very competitive team and we are too."
One more piece of good news – these teams won't have to battle each other again. Sunrise Mountain entered the night at No. 7 in the Division II rankings, while Campo Verde came in No. 4 in Division III.
The Mustangs grabbed an early lead in the fifteenth minute on a goal by senior forward Sierra Mohr.
"It meant a lot. Usually after our first goal, we keep rolling, but this was a really tough opponent," Mohr said. "It's a good way to end home games for me, being a senior."
The Coyotes pressed for the rest of the first half but the home team's defense held firm. A physical 40 minutes ended ended with Mohr and senior defender Erica Ancich in each others' faces, both drawing yellow cards.
Campo Verde (8-1-1 in power point games) evened things early in the second half. In the fourth minute, junior Meg McDowell was knocked down in the box.
Senior midfielder Breanna Olsen calmly tucked in the penalty shot.
Sunrise Mountain (9-1-1) picked up its attack after being tied, but could not set up a dangerous shot. Campo Verde had a three on one break with 15 minutes remaining, yet didn't get a shot off.
"Both teams came out hard from the very beginning. It was a very physical battle," Johnson said. "The nice thing to see is that both sides were able to maintain that level. All these players left everything they had on the field."
Mustangs senior goalie Kermie Nash sprinted in to beat a diving McDowell in the box with 12 minutes left. Then in the wild final minute of regulation, she saved a header off a corner kick and started a last gasp counter by Sunrise Mountain.
After an intense 80 minutes, neither team had much in their tank for the two 10-minute overtimes. Campo Verde made a few charges, and Sunrise Mountain secured a corner with 11 seconds left.
All regular season games without an overtime goal go into the books as a draw.
"They (removed the shootout) either this year or last year," Johnson said. "They're always changing things."
