Sweet redemption
HUNTSVILLE – Second chances don’t always come, but that’s exactly what the Vestavia Hills High School girls soccer team got on Saturday.
The Lady Rebels got another shot at McGill-Toolen in the Class 7A state final. And this time, they capitalized.
Vestavia Hills (22-3-1) controlled play and defeated McGill, 2-1, to win the program’s fifth state championship. The Lady Rebels fell to the same team last spring and avenged the loss to conclude this season at John Hunt Park in Huntsville.
“It’s the nicest thing ever,” said head coach Brigid Littleton, “just to come back and redeem ourselves and show that we can come back stronger and better.”
From the outset of the season, the Lady Rebels held on to that bitter taste, boldly proclaiming from the beginning that the goal was to get another crack at McGill-Toolen and to avenge that loss in the 2017 title match.
“As a coach, you want the girls to set goals,” Littleton said. “Then watching it come to fruition and watching the girls grow from that, it shows them so much about life. If they put their mind to something and work hard, at times they may fall short, but they go back to work and they all have the same vision and the same desire that they can come together and do anything.”
Faith Hauberg got Vestavia Hills on the board with 14:11 remaining in the first half with what Littleton estimated to be a 40-yard strike. Hauberg has played on a torn meniscus in her knee since the first round of the playoffs, and was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.
Taylor Korn put the Lady Rebels ahead 2-0 with a goal early in the second half, but McGill-Toolen responded with a goal shortly thereafter to keep the margin at a single goal. Despite the narrow margin, Littleton said the team felt as if it began wearing McGill-Toolen out late in the first half and “controlled most of the match.”
Seniors Korn, Hauberg, Kat Savage, Sara McCurry, Mary Hogewood and Sophia Sabri are what Littleton calls “world-beaters,” and to simply call them a special group would be vastly underselling what they meant to the Lady Rebels soccer program.
“I am completely thankful for all they’ve done to make this program even better and to leave a legacy of greatness behind. They’re an unforgettable group of seniors,” Littleton said.
Vestavia Hills posted a 2-1 victory over James Clemens in the semifinals on Friday to reach the final. The Lady Rebels also posted wins over Oak Mountain (7-3) and Bob Jones (1-0, 3-0 in penalty kicks) to reach the Final Four.