LISBON FALLS – They were just happy to be there.

When the Lisbon girls’ soccer team reached the Mountain Valley Conference championship game, the Greyhounds hadn’t even thought about their chances against the unbeaten Mt. Abram girls. Lisbon’s focus had simply been to reach the conference title match.

“When we got to the MVCs, we were just like, ‘Wow, we made it,'” recalls Lisbon keeper Sam Purcell. “Our goal was to get to the MVCs. We were all pumped that we did that, but then we were like, ‘We’ve got to play this thing.’ We played our hearts out.”

None of the Greyhounds played harder than Purcell that day. She backstopped her team to an unlikely win in penalty kicks. It was just one of the highlights for Lisbon’s record-setting goaltender, who is the Sun Journal’s Girls’ Soccer Player of the Year.

“She was the focal point,” Lisbon coach Jake Gentle said. “It all starts with the goalie in soccer. The philosophy for us is the first offensive player is your goalie. She was a rock back there. She meant everything to us.”

Purcell finished with 10 shutouts, tying the single-season mark she set two years earlier. She also set a new career mark with 34 shutouts. Her goals-against in four years against MVC competition was 0.62.

“That’s a lot of credit to her and the girls around her,” Gentle said. “For three of those four years, we were never the top team in the conference. We were an above .500 team. To let up less than a goal a game for four years, for a team that isn’t always the top teams, says a lot about her ability.”

Lisbon finished 11-1-2, the third-ranked team in Western B, before losing to Wells in the quarterfinals.

No game probably displayed Purcell’s impact more than that 1-0 MVC title game. Purcell made 22 saves as the Roadrunners dominated play. Her acrobatic saves and calm-under-pressure demeanor kept the Greyhounds in the game, even making a save late in the second overtime on a penalty kick.

“That second overtime, that was nuts,” Purcell said. “A lot of the team had their heads down. I just looked at the team, and I just got inspired. Coach had said to play inspired, and that’s what I did.”

When the team went to penalty kicks, Gentle told his players that they had the edge because they had the best goalie. Purcell didn’t disappoint. She made a crucial save and gave her team the chance to win.

“The girls had faith in her,” Gentle said. “Going into the game, we were banged up. We were missing a couple of girls. We knew Mt. Abram was a better team. They had more skill and more speed. Sam kind of carried us on her shoulders that game.”

Purcell was not only a first team MVC all-star, but was also the conference’s player of the year. She was also named to the all-regional team for Western B.

“It was an honor just knowing that people thought of you like that,” said Purcell of the MVC honor. “I felt very flattered.”

Purcell became a goalie in seventh grade, filling in the goalmouth when her team needed a keeper. She fell in love with the position and hopes to play soccer at UNE. She’s worked diligently on her game and improved steadily during her career. Gentle says her skills and knowledge of the game have improved. Purcell says that her work with her coach paid off.

“The goalie training with my coach, he’s helped me a lot to reach my potential,” Purcell said. “I’m so grateful that I had him.”