Skip to main content

Draper Journal

Corner Canyon girls soccer team wins region, falls in state quarterfinals

Nov 03, 2017 10:01AM ● By Jana Klopsch

Corner Canyon girls soccer team finished as region champs going 9-1 in their region schedule. (courtesy Krissa Reinbold)

By Josh McFadden | [email protected]

Like all high school sports, girls soccer can be divided into three seasons: the non-region season, the regular season and the postseason. One seasons builds to the next, and the pressure and importance grows. Clearly the postseason is the most critical and where everything is on the line. Corner Canyon found this out Oct. 12 with a tough 4-1 loss to East in the Class 5A state tournament semifinals.

Corner Canyon dominated Region 7 by going 9-1, losing only to Timpview, 2-1, in the regular-season finale Oct. 3. Overall, the Chargers entered postseason play with a 13-2 mark. Still, the team had no answers for East, which shared the Region 6 title with Skyline by going 7-2-1. 

“We hoped to use the pressure from holding the first-place title all season would help us with the pressure we felt in the tournament,” said head coach Krissa Reinbold. “The excitement of the region title definitely makes you want to keep winning.”

Things were tight in the first half, with East holding a slim 1-0 advantage. But the Leopards broke the game open in the second half by outscoring the Chargers 3-1. 

Corner Canyon advanced to the quarterfinals with a 2-1 overtime victory over Roy on Oct. 10. Roy led 1-0 at the break, but the Chargers countered in the second half to send the game into extra time. In overtime, the Chargers struck again to emerge victorious and move on to face East. Karerra Passey and Kayla Milford scored for Corner Canyon.

Despite bowing out the state tournament earlier than expected, Reinbold said there were plenty of memorable moments and positives on the season. 

“There are so many fun accomplishments this season, from winning region to hosting our first playoff game and winning a playoff game, but truly I will remember what a great group of girls this team was,” she said. “The group of kids makes the difference as a coach. They wanted to learn and wanted to listen, and as a coach you can’t ask for much more than that.”

Corner Canyon enjoyed an 11-game winning streak from Aug. 22 to Sept. 28. The team posted eight shutouts and allowed more than one goal in a game just three times during the regular season. Meanwhile, the offense found the net 69 times. The Chargers scored at least two goals in all but two games, and they managed four goals or more 11 times. 

The success didn’t come because of one or two players but rather from unselfish, dedicated play.

“Our team this season has thrived off being a team and not individuals,” Reinbold said. “We stressed the importance of we are not competing against each other; we are thriving to be strong together and help each other. That team mentality truly helped all season. We have a solid team across the board. That is one of the things that has made us so strong this year — we have players in all positions the other teams need to worry about. To pick one player goes against everything we have talked about all season as a team. We are a team, not individuals.”

Like any coach, Reinbold would’ve loved to have guided her team to a state championship. But she was pleased with her players’ progress and the way they believed in themselves and each other from game to game. 

“The best part of coaching this team has been watching them grow into their own,” she said. “They started the season not confident of what they could be, even though I could see their potential. It was fun to watch them struggle to find their identity and then thrive and accomplish so many goals this season.”