Franklin High's girls soccer season ended in overtime Wednesday night in Chattanooga.
Collierville defeated the Admirals 2-1 in the TSSAA Class AAA state semifinal at The Howard School on Oct. 28. The game went past regulation, and Collierville's Gillian Arey scored the winning goal at the 91:51 mark, according to the Commercial Appeal.
Franklin Admirals Athletics posted the final score on X: Collierville 2, Franklin 1.
The loss ended a run that had Franklin playing in the state semifinals for a third consecutive season. The Admirals hadn't won a state title since 2011, according to the Williamson Herald, and had suffered three straight Final Four exits entering the tournament.
Senior Aubry Gates, a Kansas State commit, led Franklin into the semifinal after a dominant quarterfinal performance Oct. 27 against Stewarts Creek. Gates scored back-to-back goals in the first half of that 5-1 win, pushing her season total to 47 goals. That figure broke the program's single-season record set by Jenger (Burchett) Parrish in 1992, the Williamson Herald reported.
Coach Kyle Roelke said before the semifinal that his team could lean on experience heading into the Collierville matchup.
"I thought we were a pretty young group actually last year, so I think this year has been better for us," Roelke told the Williamson Herald after the quarterfinal win. "Hopefully that experience will show tomorrow."
Gates had entered the tournament nursing an ankle injury that caused her to miss the District 10-AAA final earlier in October. She returned at full strength for the postseason run.
The Williamson Herald published a photo gallery from the semifinal matchup.
No post-game reaction from Franklin players or coaches was available as of publication. The TSSAA Class AAA state championship game is scheduled for Oct. 30 at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga. Collierville will play for the title without Franklin on the other side.
