The Lowry High School girls soccer team celebrates after scoring a goal in the quarterfinal match against North Valleys on Tuesday, Oct. 29, in Winnemucca.
It may be the beginning of November and a little chilly outside but the Lowry High School girls soccer team rode one hell of a rollercoaster last week.
The Buckaroos hosted their first home regional playoff match in more than 15 years, coming off of one their best seasons in program history.
The high continued for the first 60 minutes of play against North Valleys in the opening round of the Northern 3A Regional Championships on Tuesday, Oct. 29.
From there, the Panthers flipped a switch and scored goals in the 61st and 62nd minutes, as the Buckaroos’ defense lapsed and the lead was gone for good.
Lowry's Maite Avalos goes by a North Valleys defender as she takes a shot on goal.
North Valleys added a third goal in the 78th minute and added its last in a very-long extended time in the second half for what seemed to be a 4-1 victory for the Panthers.
The high of the excellent season came to an end for Lowry but moments after the match was complete, there were issues that arose.
North Valleys self-reported an ineligible player that took part in the match.
North Valleys contacted the NIAA of the issue and forfeited the match, giving Lowry the win and advancing them to the regional semifinals in Fallon.
“It was a big range of emotion,” said LHS coach Chris Entwistle. “We go from controlling the match for 60 minutes, to falling asleep for about 15 minutes. You think your season is over and then find out that you are still playing. North Valleys is a very good team. I feel bad for the rest of the team that has to deal with this because one player.”
Lowry's Natalia Guizar puts a hot on goal during the Buckaroos' quarterfinal match against North Valleys on Tuesday, Oct. 29, in Winnemucca.
Truckee defeats Lowry in regional semifinal
Lowry found itself with an early wake-up call and 10 a.m. match with Truckee in the Northern 3A Regional semifinals at Churchill County High School in Fallon.
Truckee, the No. 1 seed from the Northern 3A West defeated Lowry 2-0 with two goals in the first 20 minutes of play.
The Buckaroos defense strengthened from there but the offense could not provide a goal.
Kaitlin Messmer saves the ball from going out of play.
"It was a more lightly contested game than the scoreboard suggests," Entwistle said "They got a soft penalty kick and we should have had an obvious handball in the box for a PK. We adjusted well to their style. Sadly a little slower than needed. It was a much more palatable way to end our season playing like this than the last 20 minutes against North Valleys. Losing is never fun, but at least we went out on with a good fight."
Lowry finished the year at 16-7-1 overall and 15-2-1 in the Northern 3A.
The Buckaroos graduate four seniors.