FENTON — In their seventh trip to the state soccer tournament finals over the weekend in Fenton, the St. Vincent Lady Indians managed to reach the state championship game for the sixth time in 16 years.
Unfortunately, though, St. Vincent didn’t come away with the title.
The Lady Indians (21-4) faced off against Clayton (14-10-1) in what was a physical, 80-minute matchup for the Missouri State High School Activities Association’s Class 2 championship game at the the World Wide Technology Soccer Park in Fenton.Only one goal was scored between the two as the Greyhounds found the back of the net in the first four minutes of action.
Coming up with what would be the game-winning goal was Clayton senior Anna McAndrew off a pass from sophomore Grace Bower at the three-minute, 41-second mark.
Only one Indian was able to get a shot off the rest of the match offensively in Mizzou commit junior Lana Adams, who produced a match-high six, but none of them were on goal.
Defensively for the rest of the 76 minutes, St. Vincent’s defense stood strong as senior goalkeeper Allie Patrick registered a game-high six saves in the final game of her athletic career.
It was also the final high school contest for five other Lady Indians — fellow seniors Kaitlyn Buerck, Haley Emmendorfer, Jocelynn Leible, Mallory Patrick and Abigail Schilling.
However, this was not the final soccer match for Schilling as she will take her talents to Division-I Western Illinois after making history with her team.
Since 2009, St. Vincent has reached the semifinals seven times, walking away with three state titles, three second-place finishes and one third. They’ve been district champions nine times during that span.
Even though the program has made seven final four appearances, St. Vincent had not reached state since the 2019 season.
Despite not bringing home a state championship, Schilling said the team can be proud knowing they’ve brought St. Vincent girls soccer back to a level of being regarded as one of the top programs in the state.
“Getting the St. Vincent girls soccer program back to the top by reaching the state championship, especially in my senior year, was truly special,” Schilling said. “While we didn’t get the storybook ending we were all hoping for, it was an honor to go this far in my senior year with this talented group of girls.
“I’m so glad we were able to bring our team back to where it belongs, and, as a senior, it made that postseason run even more special. I have no doubt that these next girls will continue the legacy that was started by St. Vincent soccer years ago, and I can’t wait to support them from the stands.”
To reach the state championship match, St. Vincent took down eventual Class 2 fourth-place Logan-Rogersville (15-8) in a semifinal that nearly saw double-digit goals.
The Lady Indians beat Logan-Rogersville 6-3 as Adams recorded a hat trick to tie for a match-high three goals with Wildcats sophomore Maddie Lou Shuburte.
Scoring the first goal of the matchup for St. Vincent was junior Sadie Cissell from 15 yards out in the 11th minute of action.
To break a 2-2 tie in the second half, Adams headed in a goal off a corner kick by sophomore Grace Jenneman in the 42nd minute.
Shuburte answered the minute after, but another underclassman stepped up big for St. Vincent after Logan-Rogersville tied the match back up.
This was none other than Indians freshman Morgan Schnurbusch, as she added two goals of her own in the 63rd and 64th minute, respectively.
Adams, who assisted Schnurbusch on one of her two clutch-time goals, gave St. Vincent a three-goal lead with her third and final of the match in the 76th minute.
While she didn’t score, Schilling paced Adams in shots on goal with four of her own to Lana’s five.
Along with their incredible play on the field, these Indians were backed heavily by their families, friends, classmates and community members, as the World Wide Technology Soccer Park stands were packed with the St. Vincent faithful.
“Playing in the state semifinals and the championship was really fun and exciting, and the atmosphere was incredible with all of the support from our hometown,” Schilling said. “It was amazing to see the stands filled with blue and gold from the field, and it really helped set the energy.
“We had a lot of opportunities in the semifinal game, but not as much in the championship, as it was a very physical game, and a lot of us were battling injuries. Nevertheless, playing in the state games was a surreal experience, one that I certainly won’t forget.”
Graduating key players like Schilling and others from her senior class will certainly be a huge loss for St. Vincent looking ahead to next season.
On the bright side, the Indians will return arguably the best player in Missouri in Adams, as well as other starters like Cissell, Jenneman, Schnurbusch, juniors Rylee Robinson, Callie Schnurbusch and sophomore Aubrey Emmendorfer.
St. Vincent will also certainly rely heavily on other underclassmen like freshmen Adrionna Boland and Olivia Winkler, who both started throughout the spring.
Together this season, this group of Indians made history by making the program’s first final four in six years and winning the second district championship in three seasons, along with posting 21 wins — the most for St. Vincent since 2011.
“Our team was filled with a lot of talent this year, but what truly set us apart from the rest and helped us get so far was the way these girls play and the camaraderie within the program,” Schilling said. “These girls are incredible athletes, smart soccer players and fierce competitors, who play with heart and grit, but, more importantly, they’re great teammates.
“We all get along so well, are great friends outside of soccer, and play for each other. You never have to question whether we’ll give it our all during a game, and everyone works hard until the final whistle, which was definitely shown in our postseason run.”
