Hereford's missed chances were starting to add up. The Bulls couldn't convert on a good shot two minutes into the game, another good opportunity a few minutes after that as well as a penalty stroke later in the first half.
But Mary Claire Abbott's quick thinking erased the mounting frustration. Abbott got a loose ball right in front of the cage and flicked it over Dulaney goalie Biz Schaeffler midway through the second half to give No. 12 Hereford a 1-0 victory over No. 15 Dulaney in the Baltimore County championship game Wednesday night at Lansdowne.
The victory gave Hereford (11-2) its third consecutive county title. Last year, the Bulls also scored a 1-0 victory over Dulaney (9-4) and then went on to win the Class 3A state championship.
Hereford coach Tammy Mundie said she was beginning to get concerned with the misses early in the second half – especially because the Lions were starting to get some chances of their own.
"You need to convert when you get the chances," Mundie said.
But Abbott finally broke through. After Dulaney got a couple of corner hits and finally began to get some good offensive pressure, the Bulls used their speed to turn things around.
They pushed the ball into the circle, and it eventually wound up on the stick of Abbott. She quickly sent it over Schaeffler for the game's only goal with 15:13 left in the game.
"The goalie was right there, so I had to get it over her," said Abbott, a sophomore. "I just flicked it over."
Hereford had beaten Dulaney in the regular season in a game that had gone to penalty strokes, but the Bulls got several more scoring chances than the Lions in this game.
In fact, Hereford put pressure on Dulaney right from the start. Allie Hackbarth raced in on the right wing and got a good shot in the circle two minutes into the game. But Schaeffler made a big save.
Schaeffler made some other good stops early, getting six of her nine saves in the first half. She also robbed Hackbarth again on a penalty stroke with 8:45 left in the half. Hackbarth tried to shoot it to the goalie's right, but Schaeffler dove to knock the ball away and keep the game tied.
Those were the best chances until Abbott's goal. But Dulaney just missed on a few late chances. Hereford's defense helped out when Meghan Rock blocked a Courtney Jantzen shot at the cage with her stick with 3:47 left.
Gabby Vorwald of Hereford caught up to Rock in the final seconds, stopping a possible Dulaney breakaway. Hereford goalie Missy Betsill played well and finished with six saves.
"We're happy that we're here," said Dulaney coach Kendra Whaley. "But they're a good team. They're tough."
No. 5 Century 2, North Carroll 0: Brittany Bar made six saves in her ninth shutout of the season for the host Knights (11-1). Casey McCorkell, who had two goals and an assist in a 4-1 win over Urbana on Tuesday, had one goal and Kailey Wolfe scored the other.
No. 7 Bryn Mawr 2, No. 11 Notre Dame Prep 1: Lili Turner scored the game-winner from the top of the circle with three seconds left in overtime to lift the Mawrtians (9-2) over the Blazers (7-2-1).
Molly Danko gave Bryn Mawr a 1-0 lead with 17:50 left in the first half before NDP knotted the score with 13:07 left to play.
"Both teams played fast and the ball moved very quickly back and forth," said Bryn Mawr coach Jeanette Budzik. "It had a ping-pong effect on the game."
Boys soccer
No. 5 Perry Hall 3, Eastern Tech 1: The visiting Gators (10-2) scored all three goals in the first half. Single goal scorers for Perry Hall were Nick Liberto, Mitchell Long and Kevin Medrano.
Towson 3, No. 13 Hereford 1: Joel Modesto scored twice and Dylan Weber had one as the host Generals (5-6) upset the Bulls (7-3-2).
Girls soccer
No. 2 Archbishop Spalding 1, No. 3 Mercy 1: The Cavaliers (12-3-3) and Magic (11-1-3) played to a double-overtime tie. Anna Borkowski gave Mercy a 1-0 lead 10 minutes into the game before Spalding knotted the score at the 10 minute mark of the second half.
"Both teams had very few chances to score," said Mercy coach Doug Pryor. "And both teams were tired by the overtime period.."
No. 4 John Carroll 5, St. Mary's 0: Olivia DiFonso scored twice to power the visiting Patriots (11-2-2) past the Saints.
No. 5 Severna Park 6, Northeast 0: Sarah Peterson had two goals and Marisa Kresge had a goal and two assists as the visiting Falcons (11-0-3) blanked the Eagles and became Anne Arundel County Champions.
Girls volleyball
No. 5 Fallston d. C. Milton Wright, 3-0: Shannon Webb had 14 kills and 11 points, including five aces for the host Cougars (12-1). Marissa Curran added 11 points and three blocks for Fallston, who won, 25-17, 25-16, 25-13.
Baltimore Sun reporters contributed to this article.