Sophomore defender Nya Jean-Baptiste scored a pair of goals on set pieces to lead the top-ranked Roswell girls soccer team past visiting Pope 3-1 at Ray Manus Stadium in the Class 5A semifinals on Thursday night.
Roswell (20-0) will play in its third consecutive state championship game next Friday at Duluth High School.
No. 2 Pope finish 17-4, one step short of their team goal of playing for a state championship. The loss was particularly hard for the eight Pope seniors, all of whom were starters this year.
“When you get this close and lose a tough game, it’s hard to see it end this way for them,” Pope coach Paul Dahlhauser said as his team quietly filed off the pitch. “The goal is to always compete for a state championship, and it’s tough when you don’t get to reach that goal. But I’m so proud of our team’s effort. ... We kept fighting all night long and took the No. 1 team in the state down to the wire.”
For Roswell, a berth in the GHSA state finals is becoming common. This is the third consecutive championship game appearance for the Hornets, who beat Marist in the 2023 title game before losing to Marist last year.
“Our fight toward the end of the match today was great to see, because Pope was pressing us hard,” Roswell coach Mary Desing said.
Roswell clung to a 2-1 lead for most of the final 30 minutes of play before scoring an insurance goal with 18 seconds remaining.
“You’re always going to face really good competition when you get to this level, and we knew Pope would be a tough matchup,” Desing said. “It’s an awesome feeling to reach this level and play for a state championship, but the pressure just keeps building the deeper you get into the tournament. We just want to stay focused on getting better in the areas we can and make sure we get a more consistent effort for the entirety of each game.”
The two sides played a defensive stalemate in the first half, with neither able to score or create many scoring opportunities. Roswell had just two shots, both saved by Pope goalkeeper Addie Daughtry, and both of Pope’s shots on goal were stopped by Roswell netminder Lilli Suarez.
Early in the second half, Roswell took advantage of the first break of the match. Pope was whistled for a hard foul in the box, and Jean-Baptiste drilled the ensuing penalty kick into the lower left corner of the net, giving the Hornets a 1-0 lead in the 43rd minute.
Five minutes later, a Pope foul led to a free kick from 40 yards out, and Jean-Baptiste lofted a booming shot that sailed just under the crossbar and out of Daughtry’s reach for a 2-0 lead.
Pope clawed back to within a goal in the 51st minute, when Sarah Gentry collected a deflected shot in the box and flicked in a goal from six yards out to make it a 2-1 game.
It stayed that way for most of the final 29 minutes, with Pope keeping Roswell contained in its defensive end but never able to mount many scoring chances.
With more players committing to the attack in the final minute, Roswell’s Rachel Phifer took advantage of a breakaway opportunity on the left flank and ripped a shot into the lower right corner of the net from 10 yards out with just 18 seconds left to secure the win.
Roswell outshot Pope 9-5, with six shots on-frame. Daughtry and Suarez each made three saves apiece for their respective teams.
Roswell will seek its second-ever state championship next week against Northgate (20-2), a 3-1 winner over No. 5 Greenbrier. The Class 5A girls championship match will be May 16 at 5 p.m. at Duluth’s Maxwell Memorial Stadium.
State finals schedule:
Girls finals at 5 p.m.; boys finals at 7:30 p.m.
McEachern High School
May 13 Class A-D1
May 14 Class 3A
May 15 Class 6A
Duluth High School
May 14 Class 3A-A Private
May 15 Class 4A
May 16 Class 5A
Mercer University
May 15 Class A-D2
May 16 Class 2A
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