In the two semifinal games tonight at G-C, only one goal was scored in regulation -- and only one goal was scored in the run of play -- but there was plenty of drama.
G-C beat Shelbyville 2-1 in a shootout -- with all the goals coming in overtime before the Cougars won the shootout 5-3. NP beat Mt. Vernon 1-0 in an emotional game that saw four Marauders receive red cards and numerous yellow cards shown.
In the opener, the goalkeepers held sway through much of regulation, as G-C's Collin Kleckner and his Shelbyville counterpart both pitched shutouts through the first 80 minutes.
It appeared G-C would win when Adam Koers punched a shot out of a scramble into the back of the net midway through the first seven-minute overtime. But the Golden Bears' Mitch Brown drew a penalty kick when G-C was called for a handball in the box. Brown buried it with 2:28 left, sending the game into a shootout.
G-C's Collin Kleckner -- who has been a solid keeper all season for the HHC co-champion Cougars -- stood tall, diving to his right to stop the Bears' first attempt in the shootout. It would be the only cushion the Cougars needed, as Angel Rodriguez, Caleb Dunn, Trent Barnhart, Koers and Kleckner all scored in the shootout to win it 5-3 -- Shelby's last shooter was not necessary.
In the second game, New Palestine defeated Mt. Vernon 1-0 in a game where emotions ran high as the game went on. Early on, both teams had scoring chances but NP's Jaron Pridgen and MV's Corban Hartley both made key saves. The Marauders had the best chance of the opening half when a corner kick got loose in the goalmouth, but Pridgen made two point-blank saves on shots from inside six yards to thwart the threat.
NP got the lead when Ben Richter went down from behind just inside the 18-yard stripe with 30:00 to go, drawing a penalty kick. John Ernster put int into the lower-left corner for his sixth goal of the season, giving the Dragons the game's lone goal.
NP had a handful of other chances -- Ty Fidler just missed a header from 10 yards out five minutes later, as it skimmed just over the bar. With 20:38 left, it appeared the Dragons went up 2-0 when Ernster tried to quick-kick a free kick. Hartley came way off his line to punch it out, but the ball went right to NP's Daniel Wright, who perfectly placed a 30-yard shot from the left side into the vacated net.
However, the official said the ball was put into play before the ready-for-play signal had been given -- a yellow card had previously been issued on the play, stopping the clock and allowing a substitution -- so the goal was disallowed. Three minutes later, the Dragons had another apparent goal disallowed when Wes Fox was ruled to have fouled Hartley before chesting the loose ball they were both going for into the net.
So, it stayed 1-0. Pridgen was forced to make one strong save, but things got heated in the final 10 minutes, when two Marauders were sent off after a foul with 9:46 left, and in the final two minutes, two more MV players were given red cards -- including Hartley for making a what appeared to be goal-preventing play to stop a Dragon on a loose ball 20 yards away, and another for a hard foul in the closing seconds, forcing MV to finish the game with seven players. The Dragons received a pair of yellow cards in the same stretch and four in the game, including one for playing with 12 players on the field.
MV finishes a fine season with a 9-4-3 mark, and will send off a strong senior class.
So, the co-Hoosier Heritage Conference champions will play each other Saturday night for the sectional title. When they played in the regular season, their match went to the seventh round of the shootout before G-C won 3-2. The Cougars are 12-3-2 on the year. The Dragons are 12-5.
