TAPPS playoff soccer: Nolan takes down powerhouse in semis, Grapevine Faith advances
For the last 30 years, Dallas Ursuline has been a thorn in Jay Fitzgerald and Nolan Catholic’s side
The Lady Bears have won 26 state championships in that span, including 12 times in which they beat Fitzgerald’s teams in the state title game.
But Fitzgerald got the gorilla off his back Wednesday in thrilling fashion.
Sophomore forward Avery Hutka scored her 18th goal of the season, the biggest of her career, in the 86th minute and Nolan Catholic defeated Ursuline in overtime, 3-2, in the TAPPS Division 1 state semifinals at Mustang-Panther Stadium in Grapevine.
The Lady Vikings (25-4-4) head to their first state championship game since 2011 to play Houston St. Agnes at Waco ISD Stadium at 5 p.m. on Friday.
“Huge weight off. Ursuline has been the cream of the crop every year. They’re always top-20, top-10 in the nation and it’s because of their coaching, players and tradition,” said Fitzgerald, who lost to the Lady Bears in the 2018 regional round. “In the fashion we were able to win, it was amazing.”
“It’s the type of goal Avery makes,” junior captain Grace Gnatovic added. “It was a super exciting moment.”
Fitzgerald is in his 22nd season at Nolan. He said the Lady Vikings have never beaten Ursuline in the playoffs.
Less than a minute into the match, senior captain Mya Ulloa took a pass from Hutka to score her 15th goal of the season. Hutka’s assist gave her 19, which leads the Fort Worth area.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game and that we had to push through,” said Gnatovic. “That goal 30 seconds in was huge for us.”
Then Ulloa found junior forward and Texas Woman’s commit Laci Earixson in the 43rd minute for her area leading 38th goal of the year. Nolan led 2-0, but Ursuline (18-1-1) would rally.
The Lady Bears found the back of the net in the 53rd minute and just a minute later, tied the game at 2 off a corner kick.
“We let up a bit, but we weren’t going to lose. We knew we were going to score again. We just had to keep our heads up and stay composed,” Gnatovic said. “They’re one of our hardest rivals, but we knew we could beat them.”
The two teams met in November at Nolan and ended in a 1-1 tie.
“It’s kind of what we’ve done all year long,” Fitzgerald said. “The girls said they weren’t going to lose, it wasn’t going to be their last game.”
Grapevine Faith 3, Tyler Grace Community 1
The Lady Lions continued their title defense with a 3-1 victory over the Lady Cougars in the TAPPS D2 semifinals on Tuesday in Forney.
Faith will play in the title game at 2 p.m. Friday at Waco ISD Stadium. The Lady Lions won state last season and in 2017. It’s the fifth straight season in which the program has reached at least the state semifinals.
Faith led 2-1 at intermission before adding its third goal in the 72nd minute.
This story was originally published February 19, 2020 at 5:54 PM.
