Breck freshman forward Kate Warner spent much of her team’s Class A girls soccer championship game against St. Croix Prep on Saturday, Nov. 7, conducting self-induced pep talks. Throughout a scoreless game that had both teams facing difficult defenses, scoring opportunities were a precious few.
She kept reminding herself that she had to be the one to break through and do something special, not only for her team but the girls' soccer program.
“It was on me, that’s what I kept telling myself,” she said.
With overtime looming, the golden moment she coveted was created by teammate Siena Prevost, a junior defender. Prevost lofted a brilliantly placed through ball over St. Croix Prep’s defense to an awaiting Warner with just under three minutes remaining in regulation.
With a sea of green turf in front of her, Warner converged on St. Croix Prep sophomore goalkeeper Charlotte Schwoch. Again the questions raced through her mind. Should I go left, should I shoot right? Is a chip shot the way to go?
“I went through all of the possibilities,” she said.
She went to the far right, and the ball found a place to rest in the back corner of the goal to give the No. 3-seeded Mustangs a 1-0 victory at U.S. Bank Stadium. It was the first girls soccer state championship for Breck (15-5-2) in three state tournament appearances. In 2021, the Mustangs were the Class A runner-up in its first appearance.
It was Breck’s second 1-0 victory over St. Croix Prep (15-4-3), the No. 5 seed, this season. The other came on Sept. 19.
As she did throughout, Breck senior goalkeeper Luna Popescu kept St. Croix Prep off the scoreboard by making key saves or directing the ball away from danger within the penalty area.
“It is so special right now,” she said.
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