Wakefield boys soccer
Wakefield's Ryan Metts (left) and Millbrook's Matthew Smith fight to position themselves for the ball during Monday night's thriller, which the Wolverines won 5-4 in overtime.
Cardiac Kids
Lying at the bottom of a celebratory pile-up following his game-winning overtime goal over Millbrook Monday night, Wakefield senior Ryan Metts had a clear view of the scoreboard.
His goal just put the Wolverines' soccer team ahead 5-4 — a lead they kept— but Metts was worried about the clock. There was still 1:59 remaining in the contest's final overtime session, and the match wasn't over just yet.
"I actually thought there is too much time left," he laughed following the game.
Just five days removed from a thrilling 1-1 tie with Sanderson — Wakefield tied the game with 12 seconds remaining in regulation — the Wolverines know all too well what can happen with time on the board.
Check out highlights of the Wakefield/Millbrook match-up.
Alas, Wakefield sealed the victory Monday, thanks in part to two stellar saves by keeper T.J. Scharville, and the Wolverines took another large step toward redeeming themselves after a lackluster first half of conference play.
Metts didn't understate the importance of his team's tie at Sanderson and win over Millbrook, which improved its record to 2-5-1 in league action.
"We just turned around the whole season right there," he said. "It started at Sanderson, and we are continuing to turn it around."
Showing the same renewed energy they displayed against the Spartans, the Wolverines jumped out early Monday as Davis Edwards tallied a goal in the 14th minute off an assist from Brandon Ruthfoss.
Three minutes later Alex de Groot tacked on his first goal of the season, giving Wakefield a 2-0 lead.
For a team just a few contests removed from an offensive dry-spell — they scored just seven goals in their previous eight games — the Wolverines were making all the right decisions early. (Ruthfoss netted another goal 10 minutes later, but it was negated because of an offsides penalty.)
Wakefield appeared to have a stranglehold on the first-half action, but Millbrook's Sion Ya made a strong run at goal with three minutes before intermission, drawing Scharville away from the goal. The ball then deflected off the keeper, and Wildcat forward Austin Dietz found himself with a wide-open shot and tapped in a goal.
The score drew Millbrook within one point, and provided the squad a big lift heading into intermission.
"We were facing a 2-0 hole, so that goal was big," Millbrook coach Matt Edwards said. "It really got us going."
In the second half, Wakefield put together several strong scoring chances, but were unable to extend its lead back to two goals. And Dietz made the Wolverines pay, streaking ahead of the defense on a breakaway and tallying his second goal of the match. The score pulled the match even at 2-2, but the tie wouldn't last long.
Two minutes later, Metts hit a beautiful through-ball to de Groot, who knocked it passed Millbrook's Parker Eden, before tumbling over the Wildcat keeper. Without a goal on record entering the contest, de Groot notched two Monday.
However, Wakefield's 3-2 advantage didn't stand up as Mark Hoffman scored in the 75th minute, and eventually sent the match into overtime. (The extra session is played in two 10-minute halves.)
For both teams, Monday's game was the second consecutive extended match — Millbrook fell 2-1 to Broughton Sept. 30.
Seven minutes into overtime, Millbrook senior Connor Karr delivered, nailing a long-distance shot and giving the Wildcats their first lead of the game.
Three minutes later, during the break between sessions, a heated discussion broke out on the Wakefield bench.
"We were pissed off at the end of first OT," Scharville said. "But then we got level-headed."
The junior pointed out the team desperately sought the win because "a tie this late doesn't do anything because we have put ourselves in such a hole."
The Wolverines came out poised in the final 10 minutes, and off Metts' free kick, Zack Spence nailed his first career varsity goal. Overcome with excitement, Spence and his teammates then dashed to their bench, but the junior tripped, fell and came up cheering once more all in one not-so-fluid movement.
Metts then sealed the contest less than three minutes later, continuing Wakefield's trend of late-game heroics.
Millbrook's Matthew Smith (5) heads the ball during Monday's 5-4 OT loss to Wakefield.
For Sloan, the night was filled with unexpected surprises.
"We got a goal from Davis, who hasn't scored since the first Millbrook game," the coach shrugged. "Alex de Groot scores two and hasn't scored all year, and Zack scores his first goal only because he's in there because Greg Judge is injured."
What also stood out to Sloan was his squad's determination down the stretch.
"Down by one with 10 minutes, and having already given up a two-goal lead, we had every reason in the world to absolutely quit and we didn't," he said. "We battled back.
"There were highs, there were lows, but what a fun game. If I paid $5 for this, I would have sat in the bleachers and enjoyed every single second."
On the other side, Millbrook tastes another sour defeat despite a valiant effort, especially from Eden, who started in place of Spencer LaCivita in goal. (The All-State keeper will likely miss up to four weeks while battling mono, according to Edwards.)
After the loss, the Wildcat coach could only tip his cap to the Wolverines.
"I think that this [match] shows how hard it is to win games in this conference," he said. "And it showed how important it is to finish off matches. But all the credit goes to them because they never went away. When they went down, they continued to work.
I think that last six minutes were their best six minutes. That says a lot about them. I think they are going to be a lot of trouble going forward."
Following the loss, Edwards explained it was difficult to address his players, who have battled Broughton and Wakefield nearly even for 200 minutes, only to fall in defeat.
"All you can tell them is you believe in them, love them, and you know how hard they have worked," the coach shrugged. "It's just unfortunate they have nothing to show for it.
But our guys are a pretty close group and pretty confident. They will stick together and put this behind them.
I don't think their memory is going to be too long on this one. It hurts. But we can bounce back. We have another huge game Wednesday [against Sanderson]. There's another chance for us. And this conference is nice because you always have chances to be great."
Millbrook hosts Sanderson Wednesday, Oct. 7, at 6:30 p.m.
The Wolverines travel to Leesville Road the same day, facing a surging Pride squad coming off a 1-1 tie with Broughton Monday.
