“This was a very tough region to get through,” Pickett said. “But it took a total team effort for us to advance -- and the leadership of Tyler Law.”
Law’s overtime heroics against visiting Lakeland Christian on Friday, Feb. 5, sealed a seventh consecutive region title to go with seven straight appearances in the state semifinals for the reigning Class 2A state champions.
“We were shorthanded for the run through the regional, but our younger players wanted to prove they were capable of playing at this level and they did,” Pickett said. “
St. Johns entered regional play without leading scorers Carson Pickett and Kaili Torres, who were participating in the U-17 National Team training camp, as well as Kara Moore, who is out for the season with a knee injury.
“This may be the most rewarding of the seven state visits because we lost 70 of the 110 goals we’ve scored when those three didn’t play,” Pickett said.
Without them, Pickett called on names such as Ellen Crist, Erika Miller, Kendall Perkins, Caroline Webber, Jordan Poquette or Marit Evans – and the underclassmen responded mightily. It was Crist who put
“I’m so proud of the younger group’s performance,” Pickett said. “This was definitely a great experience for each one of them.”