Sacred Heart Posts 2-1 Win Over Saint Paul Saints
Sacred Heart Soccer traveled to Concordia to take on the St. Paul Saints on Thursday night.
The Saints have ended Sacred Heart's season each of the past two years, beating the Gremlins 1-0 in both games.
Sacred Heart came into the game with only 14 active players, missing leading goal scorer Ian Viscarra, senior defensive back Jaysen Gerke, and starting forward Eric Mercado.
The first half was a defensive battle with both teams struggling to establish any possession on a small field. Senior Goalkeeper Dallin Chappell was dominant on corner kicks, turning away six attempts in the first half alone. The Saints continually threatened, but each time were turned away by the back line of Reuben Smith (9), Lucas Martin (12), John Ulbrich (12), and Traven Wheeler (9).
Twenty minutes into the second half, Sacred Heart won a direct kick inside the Saint's defensive half. John Ulbrich stepped up to take the kick and ripped an absolute laser of a shot into the upper 90, giving the Sacred Heart Gremlins a 1-0 lead. The Saints continued to battle and with 18 minutes left in the game converted a penalty kick to tie the game.
Overtime was a complete battle of wills with neither team willing to concede many opportunities offensively. After two ten-minute overtime periods, the game was forced into penalty kicks.
John Ulbrich took the first PK for the Gremlins and confidently placed it in the side netting for a 1-0 advantage. GK Dallin Chappell then made an amazing save, making a full extension dive to the corner to make the save. Lucas Martin gave the Gremlins a 2-0 lead with another great shot to the corner.
Chappell then duplicated his previous effort, but this time saving a ball to his left. Senior Kobey Hill then buried a ball in the back of the net for a 3-goal advantage. St. Paul's scored the next with a well placed shot to the lower right. corner. GK Dallin Chappell then helped his own cause by scoring the next PK himself. A final save by Chappell ended the game for a Sacred Heart Save.
Dallin Chappell ended the game with 11 saves on the night. Sacred Heart travels to Springfield on Saturday to play Greenwood. A win would give the Gremlins victories over three of the four Final Four Finalist from 2019.
Sacred Heart plays at Green Ridge (1-7) Tuesday.