A victory in soccer can be decided by one or two mistakes by a team or the bounces going one team's way.
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This was the case Saturday at Hersheypark Stadium in the District Three Class AA quarterfinals as Donegal fell in double overtime to the Fleetwood Tigers 2-1.
The Indians, who had the best season in school history, took a 1-0 lead into halftime only to see Fleetwood take charge in the second half and control the rest of the game.
The goal halfway through the second overtime for Fleetwood that ended Donegal's season came seconds after a direct kick for the Tigers just outside the penalty box.
The shot to the front of the goal popped in the air between two Donegal defenders, and Fleetwood forward Adam Berish headed the ball low past keeper Adam Forster for the win.
"It is unfortunate we lost the game on a goal that was not based on their play," Donegal coach Justin Snook said. "That is not a great way to end the season for any team, but it did for us."
Fleetwood dominated the stats, with more than double the amount of corner kicks and shots than Donegal. Many of the shots, though, went over the top of the goal or right to Forster, who finished with 13 saves. The Indians' defense also came through at the right times.
The first half saw both teams miss scoring opportunities before Donegal found the back of the net. Donegal forward Chris Royer shot just wide on an attempt early in the half. Minutes later, Berish ripped a shot from 20 yards that hit the top of the crossbar and bounced straight out in some luck for the Indians.
The score remained 0-0 until just over 12 minutes remained in the half. Royer drove down the right side of the field and drilled a shot into the front of the goal that keeper Eric Houghton bobbled. The ball squirmed out to an open Colton Houseal in front of the goal. Houseal, a senior forward, drilled the ball into the net for the Indians' 1-0 lead.
"Houseal was in the right place at the right time. Chris had a great shot on goal and Houseal was able to finish it," Snook said.
Forster came up with a jumping save right before the half to keep the lead, but this did not last long in the second half. The Tigers took two early shots that were off-line, but kept on the offensive, leaving Donegal struggling to keep up.
The equalizing goal came less than 10 minutes into the half. Fleetwood's Caleb Bauer took a corner kick, and the ball deflected off a few players before coming to a rest in front of Carter Stein. The senior midfielder drilled a low shot along the ground past the outstretched arms of Forster to tie the game at 1.
"Fleetwood came out tough," Snook said. "They were down, we got a little lax, but our boys rebounded and fought hard the whole way."
The Tigers had two scoring opportunities in the next 10 minutes, with the first one, a volley with an open net, going wide of the target. The second one appeared to be the go-ahead goal, but an Indians defenseman came in at the last second and knocked the ball away from the goal.
Donegal's best chance in the second half came after Justin Ulmer was taken out by Houghton, who was given a yellow card on the play and forced out of the game for five minutes. The Indians failed to put the ball on net during the five minutes, though, and never seriously threatened again during regulation. Fleetwood had a breakaway with five seconds left in the half, but the long shot by Berish sailed high.
Both teams missed wide on opportunities through the first and part of the second overtime before the game-winner by Berish. The Donegal coaches ran on the field after the goal, claiming the official had never blown the whistle to start play on the direct kick, but the goal held as Fleetwood moved on to the semfinals against Schuylkill Valley.
"I am proud of what my team did this year," Snook said. "The boys played great and we reached our expectations."
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