There's been something nagging at the Douglas Tiger girls' soccer team all year.
It's that little matter of losing to Reed in the Northern 4A title game last November.
"It was always on our minds," Douglas sophomore Katie Dry said. "We talked all week, all year about all the hard work we put in, especially with the group of seniors we had, only to come up short. We knew we had to step it up this year after losing last year. It's what we've been working toward all year."
Mission accomplished.
Dry hammered home a penalty kick in the 14th minute of overtime Saturday afternoon to give the Tigers a 2-1 victory over South Tahoe, clinching Douglas' first regional title since 2002.
Dry was awarded the kick after breaking free 1-on-1 with Tahoe keeper Alexis Nunes-Fenley with no more than 30 seconds left in overtime.
Nunes-Fenley came out to challenge the play and took Dry down to the turf as Dry shot. The ball dribbled just wide of the far post, but Nunes-Fenley was issued a red card on the play and Dry was given the penalty kick.
Dry sent a rocket high toward the center of the net, beating Tahoe's backup keeper for the goal and the win.
"All this week, when we've been practicing, that's where I want my shot to go," Dry said. "I managed to put it in the same spot today.
"I knew if I did miss it, my team would pull through at the end. Whether or not I missed it or made it, it would've turned out well. I just looked at it as another opportunity."
Douglas improved to 21-2-2 overall on the year and will play Faith Lutheran at 2 p.m. Friday in the first round of the state tournament at Damonte Ranch.
Tahoe got on the board early as Shelbi Spicer got loose on a breakaway in the third minute and rolled the ball past Douglas keeper Briana Randall for the 1-0 lead.
Douglas answered in the 14th minute when Dry made a run down the right side and crossed to the far post for Kyra Barth, who tapped it in for the goal.
From there, the team's defenses took over, although the Tigers 18 shots in the game, compared to Tahoe's eight.
BOYS: MANOGUE 2
DOUGLAS 0
In the end, it was a disastrous stretch of about 30 seconds that proved to be all the difference between the teams.
Manogue's Keith Carlson scored a pair of goals on nearly identical crosses less than a minute apart in the second half to give the Miners a win in the Northern 4A Boys' Soccer Regional Championship game Saturday at Damonte Ranch.
Manogue outshot Douglas 15-8 in the game, and held the Tigers without a shot through the first 30 minutes of the second half. Not coincidentally, it was during that same period that Manogue mounted its attacks.
"There is a reason they won the league and the region," Douglas coach Milko Vasquez said. "They're height and physical attributes are superior. They have athletic guys. You can only prepare for that so much.
"We didn't do what we had to do, and that was apply pressure. We let them kick it around too much. We had to physically try to wear them down because they are not deep.
"We didn't do that and their athletic prowess took over in the second half."
Manogue's goals came on beautiful crosses from the right side, but on the whole Douglas played an outstanding game defensively.
Brian Randall provided a number of defensive highlights and Vasquez credited Troy Cohee with a strong game in transition.
Ivan Gonzalez posted six saves before moving forward to play in the field and Corbin Zumpft came up with three saves in his place.
Douglas next faces Las Vegas High School at 4 p.m. on Friday at Damonte Ranch in the first round of the state championships.