BILLINGS — Meadow Mahlmeister knew she needed the ball in her possession with the game on the line Saturday.
After Gallatin's Avery Hill scored the game-tying goal in the 78th minute with just 2:19 remaining, the Billings Senior forward buried a long-range shot to give the Broncs a dramatic 2-1 victory and their first Class AA girls state soccer championship since 2013.
"It's all the hard work I've put in," Mahlmeister said. "If you work that hard the pressure, it's not there. You're confident as long as you keep working at it. After they scored I was like, 'We've got this. Give me the ball,' and I took it."
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Mahlmeister scored the game's opening goal in the 45th minute after breaking past the last line of defense and beating the Gallatin keeper one-on-one. It looked as if that 1-0 lead would stand until Gallatin's improbable chip shot goal in the final minutes tied the game.
Senior was able to weather the emotional roller coaster before Mahlmeister's masterpiece.
"Don't quit. You can't quit," Billings Senior head coach Steph Wagner said. "(Saturday) was going to be a dog fight and we knew it, but if we played how we knew we could and played our game that we'd come out on top. ... It's exciting to bring it back home."
The Broncs finish the year 14-1-1 and will likely be a serious contender again in 2026.
