July 17, 2001

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Alena Thom, a sophomore forward on the Wake Forest women's soccer team, scored the winning goal in a penalty kick shootout to advance her club team, Busch (Mo.) Under-19, past the Windy City Pride (Ill.) to the National Championship, after playing to a scoreless tie on Wednesday, June 27 at Cooper Soccer Complex.

After four rounds of penalty kicks, Busch led 3-2 and sent its fifth and final shooter, Thom, to the line with the opportunity to give her team the win and a trip to the national championship.

"You've just got to be positive and not think about it," Thom said. "And that's what I did. I did not think about it."

Thom snuck a low shot past the Pride goalkeeper and her team erupted in cheers.

"We practice PKs everyday in practice, so we felt prepared going up there," Thom said. "The idea of going to nationals is super-exciting."

Thom, a Jefferson City, Mo., native, scored three goals and assisted one for the Demon Deacons last season as a true freshman and helped Wake Forest get to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and finish with a 11-8-2 record and a final ranking of 23rd in the nation.