Morgan girls claim 2nd at 3A State Soccer Tournament

The Morgan girls’ soccer team finished their season in tremendous fashion battling Ogden to the end in the 3A State Championship game. Although they fell 3-1, the Trojans can proudly display their runner-up trophy and carry the knowledge that they gave it their all. 

Assistant Coach Jesse Henderson shared, “I am super proud of what our team accomplished this season. To go up against a very strong Ogden team that played ten seniors, and we played five of our freshmen in that state game, I am very proud of how they fought and battled.”

“They have the hearts of champions, and good things are coming!”

In their previous games against Odgen this year, Morgan lost 5-1 and 4-1. In the championship game, the Trojans held the Tigers scoreless for the first 38 minutes before Ogden scored on a corner kick that was tapped in from inside the penalty box with less than two minutes remaining in the first half.

Down 0-1 at the half, Morgan came out on the defense but the Tigers, fueled by their first-half success, were on the attack. In the opening minutes, Ogden had several shots on goal. In one series, Miya Turner made two great saves, and then Macie Miller stopped the ball from crossing the goal line. Unfortunately, just a minute later at the 37:57 mark, Ogden’s forward received a beautiful chip from her midfielder and sent a ball with her left foot past Turner and into the goal to extend the lead to 2-0.  

Morgan continued to play defense, but less than five minutes later, Ogden’s forward made a tremendous shot from 10 yards outside the box from the left side that curved in just inside the right post out of Turner’s reach. Ogden held a daunting lead with only 33:14 remaining in the game.

The Trojans rallied, and after a foul gave Morgan a free kick, Macie Burton scored Morgan’s lone goal from 40 yards out, a beautiful shot from the left side that dropped right over the keeper’s head and into the goal.

From the remaining 32 minutes, Ogden locked down their defense, and Morgan was unable to score and change the outcome of the game despite their best efforts.

Goalie Miya Turner tallied 11 saves in the game against the three goals scored.

The Trojans advanced to play Ogden with a 3-0 win over No. 1-seeded Canyon View on Thursday.

In their semifinal game against Canyon View, the Trojans took control early and scored on a Lacie Poll goal from a Kaydence Wardell assist 25 seconds into the game. They added another score off a corner kick from Poll to Ashlyn Noss who headed the ball into the back left of the goal to put Morgan up in the first third of the half.

Throughout the remainder of the half, Morgan controlled the ball with tough midfield play by Kaydence Wardell. Near the 15-minute mark, Kendall Peterson played an excellent ball in the box and drew a foul. After the referee pointed to the spot, Macie Burton sent the penalty kick past the outstretched hands of Gracie Burt, the Canyon View goalie, to give the Trojans the 3-0 lead.

Throughout the second half, Morgan continued to shoot well, and Burt made several terrific saves to keep the score at 3-0. Miya Turner earned the shutout with the assistance of her strong defense line. Throughout the first half, Emma Toone, Macie Miller, and Kenzie Kendall kept Canyon View from getting great shots. In the second period, Burton, Miller, and Emma Toone continued to play tough defense. λ