YANKTON – For the second straight year Groton was tied at the half, just 40 minutes away from a state title, and for the second frustrating time, the Tigers came up just short.

Sioux Falls Christian scored a goal with just over 18 minutes remaining to capture the Class A Girls’ Soccer State Championship with a 1-0 win over Groton Saturday evening at Crane-Youngworth Field in Yankton.

Last year the Tigers were also tied at the half, but were unable to get over the hump. However, Groton overcame a halftime deficit in a semifinal win over Dakota Valley last week to give the squad confidence heading into the title contest.

“We went into the game feeling good, and then halftime kind of hit and we were just like OK, we need to reset,” said Groton junior captain Jerica Locke. “The first half is the first half. We won the game in the second half of the Dakota Valley game. That was our mindset going into the second half, and it just didn’t happen.”

The Tigers started slowly against SFC, but still managed to keep the game scoreless in the opening half.

“I think we were just a step behind them. We weren’t getting the first touches on the ball,” Locke said. “They were moving to the ball and we weren’t on our toes as much as they were.”

Gradually, the Tigers found their traction and started putting pressure on Christian, an opponent they tied with in the first contest of the season.

“It took us 30-40 minutes to kind of get in our groove,” said Groton coach Matt Baumgartner. “We found that possession come second half and found our chances, and maybe it wasn’t enough chances tonight, depending how you look at it.”

The game was still without a goal until Makinli Reitsma caught everyone off guard with a slow rolling ball the trickled into the right corner of the Groton net for the game winner with 18:05 remaining.

“It was really slow motion,” said Groton senior defender Kennedy Hansen. “It was kind of like we didn’t have everybody back in the mid, and so I stepped up to pressure when we weren’t completely all back. She just kicked it right before I got to her.”

The Tigers did have chances of their own, most notably when leading scorer McKenna Tietz fired a rocket on goal in the 53rd minute, only to have it blocked by SFC goalie Neelie Stanford.

“McKenna really played well up there. Laila (Roberts) had a couple runs, too,” Locke said. “The ball just didn’t want to go into the back of the net for us.”

Still, the Tigers kept battling, but were never able to get better looks down the stretch.

“There wasn’t a moment I don’t know the girls gave up tonight,” Baumgartner said. “We fought to the last whistle and that’s just true dedication on their part.”

In the end, the Chargers were up to the challenge on defense in order to contain Groton’s high-powered offense.

“I think Sioux falls Christian played really well defensively and was not letting anything get behind their defensive line, but …. we know how we can play soccer,” Locke said, “and we just didn’t play our best soccer tonight.”

Hansen was honored as the Defensive Player of the Game. She has been an anchor on defense all year for the Tigers.

“My role is kind of making sure everyone is talking and moving in the same direction,” Hansen said, “making sure we’re all working together.”

She said facing a ball-control team like SFC is even more challenging than a team that plays with a lot of speed.

“It puts more pressure, so I really hang back behind my defensive line, just in case that they do get it past us and then I just need to catch up to them,” Hansen said, “and it gives the other defenders time to get back, so I can pressure first.”

Groton concluded the season with a 9-2-1 record with its only losses coming by one goal to Class AA Mitchell and to Christian in the title contest.

“We’ve honestly done a lot this year,” Baumgartner said. “We’ve sacrificed crazy amounts of hours into practice, learning and our dedication towards it all. … Everyone bought in. It’s been a pleasure of a year. When you think back to it, it’s just kind of bummer that again it wasn’t the right result.”

While Locke will be a key member of the squad again next year, she will miss the seniors on the team this year.

“They are my rock. They are my best friends. They have done a lot for this team,” Locke said. “I will definitely remember their leadership and just the energy, and the fun that they bring to this team.”

Hansen also reflected back on her time with the Tigers.

“Everything does come to an end,” Hansen said, “and I’ll miss pretty much everything to do with these girls, practice, bus rides, basically everything.”

As Hansen walked off the pitch for one final time as a member of the Groton team, she experienced a mixture of feelings.

“It was very emotional,” Hansen said. “It kind of felt your heart was breaking, but you were still proud of everything that we’ve achieved this season and the seasons before.”