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HERRIMAN — Olympus coach Zana Spratling said she was "speechless." Titans sophomore Hazel Baker said she didn't know what to say.
Olympus might not have been necessarily shocked about what happened Thursday, but it's safe to say they weren't expecting it either.
"I think I dreamed this last night. It doesn't feel real," Spratling said.
A dream became reality for Olympus.
Park City was the reigning champs, they were undefeated, and had outscored opponents 63-2 in the first three rounds of the playoffs. They had been so dominant that calling them a juggernaut didn't seem to do them justice.
None of that mattered on Thursday at Zions Bank Stadium.
Olympus came back from a four-goal deficit to shock the Miners (and maybe even themselves) to win the 5A girls lacrosse championship with a 10-9 victory.
It was Baker, a sophomore, who scored the winning goal when she broke a 9-9 deadlock, in the final two minutes of the game.
"I saw the net and hoped for the best," said Baker, who had two goals in the contest.
Her hope came true.
But before that moment, Olympus had to overcome history and a blistering start from the Miners. Park City had never lost a girls lacrosse match since the sport was sanctioned by the Utah High School Athletic Association. Last year, the Miners smashed the Titans 22-2, and then topped them 11-5 earlier this season.
And after the first minutes of Thursday's game, it looked like Park City was going to be up to its old tricks as it jumped out to a 5-1 lead.
But that's where the dominance ended. Olympus scored five in a row to take a 6-5 lead at halftime. The six goals was the most Park City had given up all season — and not in a half, in an entire game.
And the Titans didn't stop there.
"Our whole team had a feeling today that something was going to happen," Baker said.
Maybe it was a hope at the beginning of the game, but by the second half, it was a belief.
"We knew we could do it. We knew we had it in us. Half the battle is believing, right?" Spratling said.
Olympus patiently held possession for long portions of the game as they searched for a small opening. That resulted in the fourth goal of the game by Hannah Nelson that made it 9-7 at about the midway point of the second half.
The Miners, though, were quick to answer, scoring two quick goals to tie the game. But things changed with just over six minutes left in the game. Park City was called for its fourth yellow card of the game, forcing it to play a player down for the final 6:11.
That was the opening a now fully confident Olympus team needed. The Titans were patient in possession, and when Baker found an opening, she didn't miss.
"They are reigning champs but they're not as scary as we thought they were," Spratling said. "And that's all that matters. We can be just as scary, too."
