PARKERSBURG –Two Samara Nunn goals and timely defense got the job done for the Parkersburg South Patriots in the Class AAA Region IV Section I title match against rival Parkersburg on Wednesday night at the Erickson All-Sports Facility. The 2-0 win for the Patriots comes after being around the .500 mark during the middle of the season, as this turnaround at 11-7-2 puts them on track to face the winner of Cabell Midland and Hurricane in a regional championship match. The Big Reds were on their toes from the beginning of the match, as goalkeeper Isabel Lynch had to watch her team try and fight off the assertive South frontline. Moments later, Jessie Life found Samara Nunn on a cross for a goal in the 4th minute. That set in motion a South team eager to keep attacking. The Big Reds had few chances until the 22nd minute when Maddi Leggett had a chance to even the score up. She was out in front of a majority of South’s defenders when she fired a shot just over the goal and the outstretched hand of goalie Kendal Mader. That wouldn’t be the only near-make that eventually haunted the red and white, as Leggett had an additional opportunity with 30 seconds remaining in the first half. She blasted a shot past Mader, but the ball hit the crossbar and did not cross the line to count as a score. With that, these two rivals were locked in a tight duel with 40 minutes left. Nunn flirted with adding that second goal early in the second half, but she couldn’t finish without being impeded by Big Red defenders. Before she eventually added that tally in the 51st minute, Leggett had a couple more chances to get her team back in the match. A few minutes before the second PSHS goal, Leggett smacked a free kick that was scooped up by Mader. One minute after that, Kayla Atkinson had a centered shot that sailed over the goal and out of play. In the final 20 minutes of the match, PHS attempted to force the issue by keeping the ball on South’s side of the field. However, the Patriots converged to put a stop to any PHS rally. The best chance they had to put a ball in the back of the net was on a penalty kick from Leggett in the 66th minute. She lined up for the shot and hoped to send the ball over the outstretched hand of Mader, but the South GK punched the ball out of play to great applause from the Patriot bench. At the conclusion of the match, Nunn reflected on her two goals and what this moment means to her in her sophomore year. She also spoke about her expectations, as the playoffs are in full swing. “It felt awesome. Coming into this game, I was just so focused and determined. I was not messing around,” she said. “I had to get a goal. I think we can make it to the championship at state. At the beginning of the season, we were working a lot of things out, but we have a young team. We have a lot of freshmen in the defense doing really well right now.” It’s the end of the road for the Big Reds at 12-8-2, and the hard-fought loss gave head coach Brad Morris the chance to reflect on the team’s effort and the season as a whole. “Our girls fought really hard, and they played with their hearts the entire match, he said. “We can definitely say we left it on the field tonight. It was little finalizing pieces (I told my players at the end of the match). I was telling the girls to remember the loss so that they don’t end up in the same predicament for next year.”