Smithsburg solves Clear Spring late to win Tesla Cup as WCPS girls soccer champion

For 70 minutes of Tuesday night's game at Clear Spring, it appeared Smithsburg's girls soccer team might have to wait at least two more days to be crowned Tesla Cup champions as the best Washington County Public School team.

Junior Carson Furajter and senior Maren McFarland — spurred on by a pep talk from coach Bill Fowkes prior to reentering the game — saw to it that the Leopards left with the Tesla Cup in hand.

Furajter broke free up the left side and slotted a shot just inside the far post in the 71st minute, and McFarland found the net from in close three minutes later as Smithsburg clinched the county championship with a 2-0 victory over the Blazers.

"He told both of us that we needed the right frame of mind, and that's what we did," Furajter said.

"I just told them to get their heads in the game, play like they're capable of playing and get us going, and they did," said Fowkes.

Smithsburg (6-5-1) ended Boonsboro's four-season reign from 2019 to 2023. Earlier this season, the Leopards defeated North Hagerstown 4-1, Boonsboro 3-1 and Williamsport 4-0. Smithsburg hosts South Hagerstown on Thursday.

"Since my freshman year, we've always had a good team but we were never able to pull it off," Furajter said. "This year, we were able to finally beat Boonsboro and win it."

"It means a lot to them, especially the seniors," Fowkes said. "We've talked about stepping stones. Last week, we took the first one by earning a chance to play for (the Central Maryland Conference small-school) title. This week, we took care of finishing the county title. That's two stepping stones checked off, and we're excited to play for the (CMC small-school) title next week."

Smithsburg will host the CMC small-school title game Monday.

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Photos: Clear Spring hosts Boonsboro in girls soccer

Clear Spring (2-7-1) made Smithsburg sweat as the game remained scoreless well into the second half. The Leopards dominated possession and generated multiple good looks at the goal, but couldn't find the net. Emergency goalie Cheyenne Jesson, who took over late in the first half after Alyssalynn Barr was injured in a collision, made a key save midway through the second half to keep the Blazers tied.

"Their girls played really hard and made it really difficult on us tonight," Fowkes said.

Finally, the breakthrough came as strikes by Furajter and McFarland locked up the Tesla Cup for Smithsburg.

"It's their competitiveness and their togetherness," Fowkes said. "Last week against Walkersville, we scored the tying goal with 45 seconds left (in regulation of a 1-1 draw). I'm not sure we'd have been capable of that earlier in the season. Their togetherness has kept growing."

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Smithsburg solves Clear Spring late to win Tesla Cup as WCPS girls soccer champion