Goalkeeper Morgan Wirz’s stop in penalty kicks saved the victory for  the Cougars. After building a 3-0 lead in penalty kills, Centennial watched the Raiders crawl back to within a goal before Wirz sent her team on to the Class 2A state semifinals.

“I was just thinking about practice and being relaxed because I know I’ll be [in the right spot],” Wirz said. “And that’s exactly what happened.”

The Raiders’ Lizzie Schneeman headed home a cross from Maddy Heckmann to give Cretin-Derham Hall the lead with 28 minutes to play.

Centennial responded 12 minutes later when Monica Mischke, after a long sideline run, tucked the ball in the opposite side of net to tie the game.

“I did it for the girls,” said Mischke of her goal. “I really didn’t want the season to end.”

With two minutes to play in the second half, Raiders midfielder Rachel Clark split the defense with a clear path to the net, but couldn’t corral the pass before Wirz pounced on the ball.

MIKE ZANATTA