RUTLAND — For all the success Windsor High School has had across a myriad number of sports, one had eluded them all these years.

Often an afterthought to the school’s dynastic field hockey and football teams, boys and girls soccer languished in the background for years and years — until Saturday.

On a cold evening at Rutland High School, the second-seeded Windsor girls soccer team outlasted undefeated top seed BFA-Fairfax and scored a late, somewhat controversial winner in a 2-1 victory for the first soccer title in school history.

“They never quit, they worked hard, they wanted it,” said Windsor coach Jennifer Rupp after the game.

A year after Windsor reached the precipice but was blasted right back down by powerhouse Stowe in a 5-0 rout, the sequel was a much, much tighter affair.

The Yellowjackets had the better opportunities of a frenzied, tense first half filled with long touches and deflections but couldn’t get on the scoreboard by their own doing. Instead, it was the unlikeliest of bounces that broke the opening deadlock with seven minutes to go in the first half.

A high looping corner kick from Audrey Rupp dropped in a perfect shooting position with no Yellowjackets to collect it, but the ball caught the shin of Fairfax defender Josie Riggs and snuck past the goalkeeper to give Windsor the unexpected lead.

If anything, though, the goal just seemed to fire up the undefeated Bullets. Just seconds later, Marianna Merrit wriggled free of three white jerseys and slipped in Paige Cargill, who made no mistake in the one-on-one, slotting a low shot under Windsor keeper Sophia Rockwood to equalize before the Windsor fans were even done celebrating.

After the explosion at the end of the first half, the second half resumed the pattern of tennis racket-like tension, with neither side able to mount much of a cohesive attack. Fairfax had the better selection of attacks but found itself stymied in the final third by the disciplined Windsor defense.

Finally, with just over five minutes to go, Windsor broke the deadlock. Sophia Dufour’s low cross found the left leg of Lilly Keefe on the edge of the 6-yard box, and she directed a low shot to the bottom right corner that Fairfax keeper Mikayla Tobey clawed from the mouth of the goal but officials ruled had crossed the line to give Windsor the lead.

With Fairfax all in looking for one final equalizer, Windsor battened down the hatches and held on for a long five minutes to win the title.

Windsor finishes 16-0-1, having gone unbeaten to win the title. The Yellowjackets graduate four influential seniors, losing Rupp, Rockwood, Dufour and defender Brianna Barton.