CAMDENTON, Mo. - It was one of those prototypical "They won everywhere but on the scoreboard" games.
Despite having large advantages in shots, shots on goal and time of possession, the Helias girls soccer team found itself lacking in the biggest statistical category Thursday night - the final score.
The Harrisonville Wildcats picked up the only goal of the contest with slightly more than 24 minutes remaining and made it stand up in a 1-0 victory against the Lady Crusaders in the championship game of the Class 3 District 13 Tournament.
It was the second upset for the third-seeded Wildcats in their two games of the event, as they toppled second-seeded Camdenton 3-2 in the semifinals before dropping top-seeded Helias.
"We've had this happen to us before, but that's the game," Helias head coach Brad Dempsey said. "The game isn't statistics - at the end of the day, the game is who it shows is in front on the scoreboard."
Helias could never break through against the Harrisonville defense in a game where the Lady Crusaders had advantages of 25-12 in shots, 12-6 in shots on goal and 4-2 in corner kicks.
"(Harrisonville) played tough," Dempsey said. "They did exactly what we knew they were going to do. They were going to organize and put people behind the ball and try to counter-attack.
"... They sit in front of the ball, sit in front of the ball, sit in front of the ball. They make you score really, really tough goals, and we just couldn't get that tough goal."
Helias outshot Harrisonville 12-7 in the first half, with a slim edge of 6-4 in shots on goal. The edge could have been even greater, but the Lady Crusaders seemed a bit hesitant to pull the trigger on some opportunities to shoot.
"They were trying to set it up perfectly," Dempsey said.
Helias increased those advantages after the break, getting 13 shots off to Harrisonville's five and putting six on goal to just two for the Wildcats.
The best chance for the Lady Crusaders came just one minute before the Wildcats' score, as a header got over the outstretched arms of Baylee Streit, the Harrisonville keeper, but she was able to recover and pluck the ball away as it approached the goal line.
"We thought that header was in," Dempsey said. "It looked like it went past her, so good save by her."
The game's only score came when Payton Sandy knocked one home with 24:10 remaining.
"(Harrisonville coach Dan Coleman) made some adjustments, moving some players around, that I hadn't seen on film in past games," Dempsey said, "and credit to the young lady who made the play. (Helias keeper) Ashley (Rehagen) was covering her near bar like she should, and she got a piece of the ball, but it would have been a tough save. It was a great finish."
Harrisonville, which improves to 11-9-3, will now host Notre Dame de Sion (16-4) in a sectional contest Tuesday.
"We feel like as a coaching staff that this was the best 80 minutes we've played all year, it really is," Dempsey said. "We won 90 percent of the 50-50 balls, we played as hard as we could.
"It's disappointing. The girls are crushed. That's just the way it goes."
Helias ends the year with a record of 10-14-1.
"This season, we had a ton of ups and downs," Dempsey said. "I think it's a privilege to play for our program, as it is for most of our programs at Helias, because we get to play the best teams. This year, we played some of the best teams in the whole Midwest. I think it's awesome. A lot of the results were lopsided, but hey, you're getting to play against quality competition."