FENTON, MO – The Cor Jesu soccer team pressed the reset button.
After the Chargers won a district title by beating two of the top three ranked teams in the state, coach Rachel Brcic decided to tweak the plan for the following practice.
“We just played kickball because they were so giddy,” Brcic said. “It took us a couple days to decompress and say, ‘Ok, now winning state is the goal.’”
Goal achieved.
Maddie DiMaria continued her brilliant freshman season by scoring two goals and adding an assist to power Cor Jesu to a 3-0 victory over Summit Saturday in the Class 3 Missouri State High School Athletics Association championship game at Soccer Park in Fenton.
Cor Jesu (21-4), which closed the season on a 12-game winning streak, won its third soccer state title in school history and first since 2012.
“It’s amazing. As an alum and a player that played for Cor Jesu, it’s awesome,” Brcic said.
The Chargers rolled into the state title match having outscored opponents 11-0 since defeating Visitation and St. Joseph’s to win the district championship. They faced a Summit team that played a grueling match the day before, upsetting three-time defending champion Fort Zumwalt South, 1-0.
DiMaria understood the importance of starting fast.
“We knew we had to bring the energy,” she said. “Summit is a great team, so we knew that coming out with fire and intensity and getting the first goal would be very important.”
DiMaria earned a corner kick in the first minute. Moments later, she escaped into the penalty area and only a brilliant slide tackle by Summit junior Sienna Nicholson prevented her from taking an open shot.
Nicholson and senior Katherine Jundt led a physical Summit defense that tried to bump, jostle and knock DiMaria off the ball and off her game.
“Some days, I think, ‘I don’t know how she’s still walking with how hard she’s played.’ I’m always like, ‘Let’s just keep her in one piece,’” Brcic said.
But DiMaria did not back away from the contact.
In the 17th minute, she accepted a pass at the top of the box, took two touches with her left foot and launched an 18-yard laser into the top corner of the net to give Cor Jesu a 1-0 lead.
“When you fall down, get back up stronger. That’s what I’ve always been taught,” DiMaria said.
Less than two minutes later, DiMaria took the ball on the left side, drew three defenders and dropped off a pass to senior Taylor Arnold, who drove a 22-yard, left-footed missile into the upper right corner for a 2-0 advantage.
For Arnold, the beautifully-struck shot was a perfect punchline for a season-long joke.
“I hit a lot of shanks in practice, and it’s an inside joke that I get the bad ones out of the way in practice and save the good ones for the games when it matters,” said Arnold, who scored the tying goal in the district title game against St. Joseph’s on a 30-yard rocket.
After Arnold scored, DiMaria leapt into her arms in celebration.
“She’s just such a team player. When somebody else scores, she’s usually the first the one there to celebrate them and cheer them on,” Brcic said.
In the 22nd minute, DiMaria bodied down a pass, spun, and raced into the clear to score her 30th goal of the season. She also chalked up her 21st assist during the game.
“That’s an amazing amount of goals plus assists,” Brcic said. “She’s obviously going places. I’m going to need to get her autograph at some point.”
DiMaria dotted the ‘i’s’ and crossed the ‘t’s’ on her inaugural high school season with a first half performance seldom seen in championship game settings, let alone by a freshman.
“She’s just so humble about it. It’s just incredible to play with someone who has that heart and that grit,” said Arnold, a senior captain.
Arnold redirected a pass from DiMaria that would have produced the fourth goal if not for a diving stop from Catherine Lawler, the Summit goalkeeper. Lawler slid way out her net to thwart another great scoring chance from DiMaria before the halftime horn sounded.
“We just asked them to be creative, continue moving and keep working for each other, and as soon as they stepped on that field they were ready,” Brcic said. “Honestly, I didn’t want to go to halftime. I just wanted to keep rolling through.”
In the second half, DiMaria did everything but score. She won the ball back in the offensive end, she stood as part of the wall on opposing free kicks and she won 50-50 balls on the ground and in the air.
“Work ethic is a big thing. My parents have always taught me to be the hardest worker on the field, and I feel that if you put out hard work, you get good results,” DiMaria said. “We did that today. We put in the hard work, we put forth the effort and we were rewarded with the result.”
The result was not there Saturday for a young Summit team, but it did not take away from a magical run through the postseason that included five shutouts, notching 1-0 victories in regulation, overtime and PKs.
“We came out with the legs from a tough game we had (Friday against Zumwalt South),” Summit coach Eric Hill said. “It was a good game against a good opponent with some special players. The result wasn’t what we wanted, but we gave it our all and that’s all you can ask.”
And Cor Jesu can appreciate its difficult road to a state title, which winded through the toughest district, required a rest stop, and culminated in playing a near-perfect first half on the biggest stage.
“When we played against Viz and St. Joe, we played for each other and we realized what playing as a team is all about. It really pushed us to get where we are today,” junior Emma Shields said.
She added, “It’s the best feeling ever.”
Photos at https://benvessa.smugmug.com/Girls-Soccer-2023-24
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