Sarahi Carlos saw the play go right past her.

After West Aurora gave up a touchdown to Wheaton North with 11.1 seconds left to make it 20-19, the Falcons – who initially went for a two-point conversion before a false-start penalty – found themselves needing 8 yards to tie and force overtime.

But as soon as Carlos saw the pass intended for freshman Emily Bruzdzinski hit the ground, she was the first player to realize what had just happened.

“It was definitely a lot of pressure,” the junior said, “but we were confident in ourselves to make that stop. It definitely was close, but we were all just hungry to get the win.”

The stop on the one-point conversion proved to be the difference-maker, as the third-seeded Blackhawks knelt out the rest of the clock to take the 20-19 victory over the sixth-seeded Falcons to claim the Hoffman Estates Regional title, their second in as many years.

“There was a lot of anxiety on that play, but for some reason there was also this sense of calmness and trust in our defense,” Blackhawks coach Jordyn McFarlane said.

“We’re had our nose to the grindstone all season. Big players make big plays in big moments, and I think it just came down to how much we wanted this.”

West Aurora will take on eighth-seeded Oswego East in a sectional semifinal at 6:30 p.m. Monday at South Elgin. The Wolves upset second-seeded St. Charles North with a 14-13 victory in overtime for the regional title.

While Carlos didn’t make a big impact on defense in the final play of the game, her presence was felt on the West Aurora (20-2) offense for nearly the entire game. The sophomore finished with 220 passing yards and three touchdowns, also rushing for another 111 yards.

“I don’t think there’s a thing she doesn’t do for us,” McFarlane said. “But she’s in a leadership role, and I think she knows exactly what this team needs, and she’s not afraid to shoulder that weight.

“We’ve leaned on her, and she seems to always come up in those big moments.”

The Blackhawks took a 20-13 lead 5:57 left in the game, with Carlos throwing an 11-yard touchdown to junior Gracie Del Toro (four catches for 88 yards, two touchdowns) for their first score since going up 12-0 on a 7-yard catch from junior Rylee Woodson with 1:47 left in the first.

“I think we were all just very high with emotions,” said Del Toro, who kicked off the scoring with a 45-yard receiving touchdown in the first quarter. “At the end of the day, we still had to do our job. Once we got that touchdown and got up on the scoreboard, I feel like it made a difference, and that made everyone feel more confident.”

Wheaton North (15-3) didn’t shy away from the challenge. After getting the ball back with 1:07 left on the clock, the Falcons drove 40 yards down the field in 56 seconds, capping off the drive with a 13-yard passing touchdown from junior Moriah Herr to sophomore Brea Moore to draw it within one.

Falcons coach Will Kadera said there was no question that he originally wanted to go for two points to take the win. But after a false start set them back 5 yards, they had to go for the tie.

“We were in a lot of close games this year that prepared us for this, and they had the confidence in each other,” Kadera said. “We may have just come up just a little bit short, but the progression that we’ve made from the start of the season to now is great.

“We just played for a regional championship in our first year, and that’s a testament to the girls.”

Moore ended up with all three touchdowns for the Falcons. Along with her receiving scores, she added eight carries for 167 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns, both coming in the second quarter to give Wheaton North a 13-12 lead going into halftime.

“She’s an extremely special player, and I’m very glad she’s on our team,” Kadera said. “The fact that she’s a sophomore is even better. She does some special things when she touches the ball, and it’s fun to watch.”