On October 6th, the Seymour Boys Soccer team was defeated by the Floyd Central Highlanders 3-6 in the first round of sectionals. The Owls fought a hard battle Monday night, taking the game to 2nd OT. Let’s take a look at who scored and how the game went down.
1st Half
In the 4th minute, Bartolome Sebastian intercepted a pass and connected with senior Dominic Dennis, who beat Highlander goalkeeper Callum Pugh on the near side for a 1-0 Seymour lead.
Eighteen minutes later, Diego Feilpe’s cross from the right side was deflected by Floyd’s goalkeeper, but right to Seymour’s Markenson Paul, who knocked the ball into the net to give the Owls a 2-0 lead.
The Owls led 2-0 at the end of the 1st half.
2nd Half
After 10 minutes of constant pressure on Seymour’s goal, Floyd Central’s effort was rewarded. Midfielder Ahmad Khalil’s shot on goal was tipped by goalkeeper Jonathan Scott and then headed in by Highlander Brad Coto Demberg. Cutting Seymour’s lead to 2-1.
About 8 minutes later, a pass sent into Seymour’s penalty area drew Scott out of goal to punch the ball away. Though Scott got a hand on it, the ball was never cleared. Floyd’s Luis Riggs got to the loose ball first and punched it into the net to even the score at 2-2.
Not even a minute later, Highlander forward Rayden Freiberger scored from around 20 yards out to take a 3-2 lead.
After going down 3-2, Coach Dennis removed a defender from the field and switched to an attack-minded formation. And it worked.
With 10 minutes remaining, Seymour’s Fernando Castellanos was in the perfect place to rebound a deflected shot, pounding the rebound into the back of the net to tie the game at 3-3.
Two minutes after Castellanos’ score, an apparent go-ahead goal by Markenson Paul was taken back by an offsides call. And only two minutes after that, Seymour’s Jonathan Scott made a diving save to extend the game.
The Owls and Highlanders were tied 3-3 at the end of the 2nd half.
Overtime
With the score tied up 3-3, the teams played two extra seven-minute periods. Floyd didn’t need that much time to gain the upper hand.
With 2:13 left in the first OT period, Esias Baker scored from close range when a crossing pass just eluded Scott’s grasp. In the coming minutes, Demberg and Baker each added another goal to push the Highlanders into the sectional semifinal round.
Floyd Central defeated the Seymour Owls 6-3.
Here’s what coach Dennis had to say about the Owls’ effort: “I love these guys, every single one of them is trying to take it as entirely their fault, and they’re all trying to take ownership over it.”
“They fought for each other today. They’re sad now. We’re going to be sad on the bus ride home. It’s going to be sad in the locker room, but eventually we’re going to not be sad anymore. We’re going to have a bunch of very fond memories. We’re going to have all these moments that we shared together that we’re going to tell stories about later.”
“It’s really, really hard right now, but eventually the pain will pass, and we’ll be able to share our fondness for each other.” –Tribtown.com
This team gave it everything they had, and from a student’s perspective, I could tell that the players really cared about winning. This was a really fun season, from the packed student sections at the home games to the Owls getting hot at the end of the season.
My preseason record prediction for the Owls was 7-9, and to be honest, I didn’t have much faith in the team. The Owls ended the season with a 7-7-2 record, but they surprised me with their fight. I said the seniors needed to step up before the season started, and they did. Everyone played their role, and everyone gave it their all.
Thanks to coach Dennis and all the players for a great season. We will see the soccer team next year.
Owls Will
