Lincoln Southwest girls claim district title

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BY TODD HENRICHS / Lincoln Journal Star

With the maturity that his Lincoln Southwest girls soccer team showed in securing Wednesday’s district title, coach Dan Tharp can feel a whole lot better heading to state for the third straight season.

“They’re a different team. They’re much more confident,” said Tharp, whose fifth-ranked Silver Hawks defeated Omaha Burke 3-0 for the A-3 district title.

“Now we need to get to state and really play at state,” he added. “The last two years, it seemed like we were just happy to get there.”

Wednesday’s win against Burke (7-8) wasn’t as easy as it seemed. The teams played scoreless for 60 minutes before one goal seemed to open the floodgates.

Bri Exstrom outmuscled a Burke defender to put in a rebound and Southwest (12-1) scored twice more in the next 10 minutes. First, Clare Espinosa converted after a teammate’s shot caromed off the post, and later, Exstrom scored her second goal of the match.

Jami Finnell was solid in goal for the Silver Hawks, and although she had to leave because of a bloody nose midway through the second half, the shutout wasn’t threatened.

“At halftime, we told them it was just a matter of time,” Tharp said. “As long as we kept playing hard, we would break through. And once we did, it all opened up.”