Kaitlyn Tierney's goal sends Plainedge to the Nassau Class A girls soccer final

Kaitlyn Tierney and Lucy Younghans are on the verge of making Plainedge girls soccer history.

The seniors could be part of the program’s first-ever Nassau championship. Tierney scored the winning goal to lead No. 3 Plainedge (12-2-3) to a 1-0 win over No. 2 North Shore (6-3-4) in the Nassau Class A semifinals at Cold Spring Harbor on Saturday.

“It was kind of a surreal feeling to me because I haven’t been scoring this season as much,” Tierney said. “But it was kind of like, I can put the team on my back and be able to finish. It was just an amazing feeling getting hugged by my teammates and knowing I put us in a good spot to win.”

With about 22 minutes left in the second half, Plainedge earned a corner kick, which led to Younghans getting an opportunity for a header. She clanked the ball off the crossbar and right post before the ball fell to the feet of Tierney, who knocked it in to give Plainedge the lead.

It was one of many scoring opportunities the Red Devils had during the win, including a powerful shot off the crossbar from Sienna Petruccelli in the second half. But North Shore’s goalkeeper Meredith Papiro made 11 saves to keep the single-goal margin.

Younghans, the Red Devils’ leading scorer, was held pointless. However, her play in the midfield helped limit North Shore’s time on offense. She picked up a yellow card, but then played clean - albeit aggressively - for the remainder of the match.

“I really just had to keep myself calm and focus on the game,” Younghans said. “We wanted this game. I didn’t want it to be over with my teammates and friends. I thought it was really important to stay focused and not lose my calm.”

North Shore's Alessia Marotta appeared to tie the score in the final seconds, but officials said time had already expired.

Plainedge will play No. 4 Seaford (8-3-4) in the Nassau Class A final at 5 p.m. on Oct. 31 at Cold Spring Harbor. The Red Devils won and tied a game against the Vikings this season.

“Put it all on the field,” Tierney said. “Live with no regrets. Don’t regret anything that happened in the game. You put your heart out on the field and walk off knowing you did everything you could.”