NOBLESVILLE — The Pendleton Heights girls soccer team made it to the championship round of the Indiana High School Athletic Association Class 3A sectional finals at Noblesville Oct. 8 but lost to the host team 3-0.

The Millers, who are ranked as No. 1 in Indiana in Class 3A, had to battle a team that wasn’t willing to give up easily as freshman goalkeeper Priscilla Barajas had 12 saves for the game.

“That was a big thing today, is that we talked about competing. That’s one of the things I’m most proud about today,” Coach Mark Davy said. “We made it a game for the No. 1 team in the state.”

Davy said his team had every reason to be proud of their accomplishment.

Kaitlyn Prickett and a Noblesville player had a collision incident that stopped play while medical personnel could evaluate the situation.

Both girls were able to return to the game.

The Arabians’ road to the final game by defeating Anderson 12-0 in the semifinals.

Lyza DeShong, Anika Long and Liz Herrberg each scored two goals, while Sammi Green, Kaitlyn Prickett, Isabelle Phillips, Courtney Prickett, Ella Brindley and Emilee Powless all scored one a piece.

With a season record of 9-8 and Hoosier Heritage Conference record of 4-3, the Arabians will return several underclassmen for next season.

“We have tons of talent coming back, and we want to be that team celebrating at the goal and taking pictures at the goal next year and in years to come. Where our program is right now, it’s a real possibility,” Davy said.

He said in years past, maybe they didn’t actually believe it was a possibility, but now it is.

“It’s there for us,” Davy said.

He added that the growth of the program has come from team members playing in the off-season and taking advantage of working in the weight room, building the strength they need.