Jeff Moeller, sports correspondent

Throughout their undefeated season, the Richmond Hill’s girls’ soccer team has faced their share of uphill battles and challenges. And on Friday night, they overcame a new one.

The Wildcats rose again to the occasion when they grinded out a 2-0 double-overtime playoff victory over Norcross on May 1 to advance to the state’s elite eight round.

The team (19-0) will host Harrison (15-4), a 1-0 winner over North Atlanta on Monday at 5 p.m.

Senior Ella Peterson, who scored the team’s first goal in double overtime, saw her team overcome a new obstacle with their grit in a highly contested contest.

“We were challenged in ways we haven't before,” said Peterson, who scored her 34th goal of the season and added an assist. “With our determination, we were able to overcome the challenge and end the game with the victory. I think what makes our team so good is we do well passing, our possessions, and doing the basics.”

Sophomore Aubrey Fanning, who scored the second goal a few minutes later, viewed their victory as another opportunity to show their overall presence.

“This was a chance to really prove ourselves and how far we’ve come as well as do something that Richmond Hill girls’ soccer hasn’t done in a while which is make it to the elite eight and I think we did just that. This was definitely the toughest challenge thus far,” said Fanning.

“I felt we were well prepared thanks to our coaches and played to our standard well.”

She worked well with Peterson for her goal.

“I was prepared and in the right place at the right time for Ella’s beautiful cross and I felt it helped us calm down and relax a little bit in the heated game,” added Fanning. It gave us breathing room to realize we can do this and persevere. Our team showed a great effort tonight and we were all helping and working for each other which I think definitely helped us win tonight.”

Head coach Shawn Allen knew his team faced another challenge. He was impressed with their persistence.

“It was a challenging match,” noted Allen. “Norcross had a mix of large athletic players with more technical soccer players. They were a solid team. We’ve had lots of challenges this season playing some tough teams. I respect all the teams we have played and they have presented different challenges. Many of the teams we’ve played have compared to Norcross.

“However, we created many chances and need to be more clinical in finishing our chances. We finally put it together in overtime and put the ball in the net. The girls were resilient and I knew they were going to continue to create scoring chances and I’m proud of them for putting the ball in the net in overtime.”

Sophomore Sydney Shaw also cited her team’s consistent work ethic.

“I saw the game almost as a mental challenge for the team,” said Shaw. “They were a physical team and it took a little bit of time to understand that for the majority of the team.

“I didn’t see it as the biggest challenge from a team, but for us the score was more difficult to change until overtime.”

Senior Caitlin McCormick was pleased that her team overcame another hurdle.

“The game was definitely the biggest test of the season,” said McCormick. “It was a really hard win, but we knew we couldn’t give up, especially with it being tied 0-0. I was unable to score but I almost had a really good assist. We just couldn’t connect on it.

She sees the team’s optimistic nature as a catalyst.

“Everybody was very positive about the game, and we really had nothing bad to say at halftime or at the end of the game,” added McCormick. “It definitely is going to set us up for the rest of the playoffs and I really hope it keeps pushing us through.”