Party on the Pitch

6A In girls action , the Union Redskins met the Edmond North Huskies on the campus of the University of Tulsa. In what was a hard fought game, the Redskins prevailed on an overtime goal by senior Hillary Cockrell in the 88th minute. A stingy Huskie defense kept the Union offense at bay as the first Redskin shot on goal did not come until the 33rd minute, when Shelby Martin's shot sailed just over the crossbar. The win gave the Redskins back-to-back championships and a 13-2-1 record. The Edmond North loss was its third consecutive in the finals and the second straight year that the defeat came at the hands of the Redskins. In boys play, the Edmond Memorial Bulldogs defeated Norman North 1-0 in a shootout. The victory is the Bulldogs first state soccer title since 1994 and secured an undefeated season at 15-0. A save by keeper Steven Darnell in the third round was followed by senior Justin Chavez game-winning shot. 5A First period goals by sophomores Jorge Estrada and Chris Carwile gave the Booker T. Washington boys an early 2-0 lead against Bishop Kelley in the state title game. In the second half, BTW junior Nate Doll's shot attempt was deflected by Comet keeper Quinton Hubbarth, but Doll tapped the rebound in making the score 3-0 in the 53rd minute. The Doll goal put the game away as the Hornet defense was able to keep the Comet offense, which had scored 60 goals in 17 games, scoreless with Hornet sophomore keeper Sam Diacon making three saves. In front of a crowd of 1,000 on the campus of the University of Tulsa, the Hornets won their seventh state championship in school history and the first since winning the 4A title in 2001. With the win, the Hornets record went to 13-4 for the season, and Bishop Kelley finished with a record of 16-2. A 30-yard shot in the upper left corner by Bishop Kelley sophomore Alex Starrett in the 68th minute was all the Lady Comets would need to claim their tenth straight title. The victory, over Booker T. Washington, was special for Comet seniors Katie Bykowski, Christina Moore, Tracy Ritchie, Veronica Page and Amelia Williamson, who all celebrated the fourth state title in their high school careers. Bykowski had four saves and registered her 13th shutout of the season. The win not only put the Comets in the history books, matching 10 other programs in winning 10 consecutive state titles in their respective sports. But the win also gave Bishop Kelley its second straight 18-0 season but also was the 40th consecutive win, their last loss coming in the regular-season finale in 2006. The victory was the ninth consecutive for Head Coach Troy Tokarchik whose team had scored 23 goals in their first three playoff wins but a stingy Hornet defense kept Bishop Kelley evenly matched throughout most of the game. 4A The Cascia Hall boys won their third consecutive 4A state championship in a 3-0 victory over Oklahoma Christian School. Led by junior Price Pinkerton, the Commandos improved their record to 13-1. Pinkerton scored two second half goals and won his second state title of the school year, having been on the Commandos state champion football team. A Chase Francisco assist to Scott Chevaillier gave the Commandos a lead they wouldn't surrender. Then it was Pinkerton's time to shine as he took a Byron Dale pass and made a 15-yard shot with 13:33 left in the game, making it 2-0. Then with 8:46 left, Pete Testa's corner kick was placed perfectly for Pinkerton, who knocked it in for the final goal of the game. The win was the 44th in 45 games for the Commandos in the last three years. In girls action, the East side wasn't as fortunate as Bishop McGuinness came back from a 1-0 Metro Christian lead to score four goals and win the 4A girls state championship. An early goal by Metro Christian's Johanna Sheppard off an Allison Tipton corner kick wasn't enough. The Patriot defense was unable to slow down a speedy Irish team and McGuinness capitalized off the advantage. The first Irish goal came in the 26-minute mark when midfielder Kelsey Gray raced down the field and made a left-footed shot to tie the game at 1-1. The Irish led the game in shots with 21 compared to the Patriots three attempts, a stat that proved to be the difference. Seventeen of those shots came in the second half as the Irish had the wind to their back and took advantage of it. Jacquelyn Elmer scored on an empty goal in the 56th minute, and seven minutes later Abbey Akin scored on a left-footed rocket. The final goal came in the 77th minute off a beautiful assist by Lindsy Hazen to Elmer. The Irish finished their season 13-3, while Metro Christian finished 13-4 for the season.