The Cinderella season for the Pointers (14-4-6) continued Saturday as the Point Loma High School (PLHS) girls soccer team clinched its first CIF Division II championship title with a 2-1 road victory over the Mount Carmel Sundevils. The win also secured a berth in the regional state playoffs for PLHS, which has not sent a team to the state’s post-season play since 1999, when the boys basketball squad notched an appearance. Saturday’s championship win was also the first by either of the PLHS soccer clubs since 1995. Prior to this year, the girls soccer team had never advanced beyond the semifinal round. The game was tied at one goal apiece after regulation, followed by a scoreless overtime, until the Pointers clinched the title by outscoring the Sundevils 4-1 in penalty kicks with goals by Taylor Gruelich, Amelia Whitaker, Marie Laube and Shelby Murphy. “We had possession of the ball for about 80 percent of the first half and then we had a tremendous second half with plenty of missed opportunities that almost made me go gray,” said PLHS girls head soccer coach John Murphy. Point Loma fell behind early as Mount Carmel scored just over a minute into the contest. “That really woke our girls up,” Murphy said. The Pointers worked to tie the game and were finally able to do so after 55 minutes when Whitaker, a senior, scored her first goal of the season off a penalty kick. “Amelia has been an awesome player for us all year long. She’s been an All-Eastern League player for four years,” Murphy said. Whitaker, who scored one of the four overtime goals, has also been accepted into San Diego State University this fall. “I was very comfortable with her kicking in overtime and figured if we’re going to go down, we might as well go down with our best players,” Murphy said. Murphy also decided to switch his goalkeepers for the penalty kicks. The change led to three misses by Mount Carmel, two of which were stops by Pointer goalkeeper Alexis Da Rosa, who normally plays foward. The CIF finals game represented the team’s fourth consecutive playoff win this season and its third straight road playoff win — along with 19 non-losses over the past 20 games. Point Loma began the season 0-3-1 after the team suffered some injuries at the start of the year, but Murphy didn’t panic and decided to rest his starters so they could get healthy for the playoff stretch. Murphy’s plan worked, resulting in a 10-1-5 regular season finish. The only loss came against Eastern League rival Scripps Ranch at home on Senior Day when Murphy played his substitutes for the majority of the game. The defeat did not hurt the Pointers’ momentum as they opened the postseason with a 1-0 win over Valhalla High, outscoring them in penalty kicks 4-1. Point Loma then defeated No. 1 seed Hilltop 1-0 on the road, Helix 1-0 on the road again and Mount Carmel for a third straight postseason road win. Murphy said he appreciated all the support the Point Loma fans gave the team, particularly during the playoffs. “We were the underdog against Mount Carmel and the fans came to support us on the road,” Murphy said. “The support from the community has been massive as well as the support from our principal, Bobbie Samilson, and athletic director Mike Hastings. This team won because it has a great work ethic.” JUST IN: The PLHS girls soccer team, after an impressive run this season, was defeated 1-0 by South Torrance High on Tuesday in the regional state playoffs.