During this postseason, the Bountiful girls soccer team hasn’t struggled to provide some excitement. 

Thanks to back-to-back shootout wins, the Redhawks are back in the Class 5A state title game for the second year in a row. Last year, incidentally, Bountiful lost in a shootout to Skyline in the championship match. 

The 2023 5A playoffs have been drama-filled for Bountiful. After going 12-4 in the regular season and finishing second to Clearfield in Region 5, the Redhawks had down-to-the-wire matches in the quarterfinals and semifinals in the 5A tournament. In its latest game on Oct. 14, Bountiful and Brighton played to a scoreless tie in regulation. After neither team managed to score in two overtime periods, the Redhawks finally prevailed by outlasting the Bengals 5-3 in penalty kicks. Bountiful made all five of its kicks to secure the big win. 

But this thrilling finish wouldn’t have happened had the Redhawks not overcome fourth-seeded Springville in an Oct. 12 quarterfinals game. Playing on the road, the No. 5-seeded Redhawks got off to a 2-1 lead in the first half, only to see Springville outscore them 2-1 in the second half. After no overtime goals, the two teams went into a shootout. There, the shooters excelled for both teams, as Bountiful’s Myka Page, Belle Sorensen, Caroline Hellewell, Emmy Sorenson, Avah Spinning and Oakley Jensen made their penalty shots to secure the victory. 

In regulation, Sorenson, Hellewell and Ellyse Kessler scored, with Kessler and Hellewell getting assists. 

On Friday, Bountiful takes on Maple Mountain at 5 p.m. from America First Field in Sandy. Maple Mountain has been a surprise team in the postseason. The 10th-seeded team from Region 7 finished third in league play and enter the contest with a 13-6 record. It has been the lower-seeded team in each of its last three playoff games. 

Heading into the finals, the potent Bountiful offense has had 62 goals this season, with Sorensen leading the way with 16 goals. Hellewell has 15 to go along with a team-high 16 assists. Kessler has 11 goals and 12 assists for the Redhawks, while Myka Page has seven goals and six assists. At goalie, Daisy Williams has had a solid season with eight shutouts. Hellewell, Kessler and Williams will play their final games in a Bountiful uniform on Friday. However, Sorensen is just a sophomore. The talented forward has already amassed 31 goals in her young high school career. Page is only a freshman, so the future remains bright for Bountiful.