BVA shot down in shootout

By JEREMY SELLEW
jsellew@yourmvi.com

Another section championship-winning season and run to the playoffs came to a screeching halt for the Belle Vernon Area boys soccer team Saturday.
The Leopards controlled most of the play, especially in the second half and overtime, before falling to No. 10 Indiana in a thrilling 1-1 game, losing in a shootout, 4-3.
Belle Vernon (14-3) couldn’t find the net on its first two penalty kick attempts, with leading scorer Daniel Sassak and Austin Martin each having their attempts saved by Indians goalkeeper Sam Fefolt.
Indiana (9-4-2) got shootout goals from Ethan Shearer, Isaac Myers and Aaron McKelvy.
Nick Nagy, Tyler Mocello and Tyler Kovatch each beat Fefolt to tie the shootout at 3-3, but Indiana’s Joshua Glaser sent a shot down low that Leopards keeper TJ Watson initially saved. But Watson’s momentum diving to his left and a bit of a damp surface helped the ball squirt out from underneath him and into the corner of the goal.
As Watson laid motionless, crushed watching his senior season come to an end, the Indians’ celebration began.
“You can’t fault TJ for that. I get the kid made the shot, I understand that, but TJ had it,” BVA head coach Rob Miele said. “If it wasn’t for TJ, we wouldn’t have even been in that position.”
Watson enabled the Leopards to reach the shootout by coming up with a monster save on a Glaser breakaway with 45 seconds remaining in the second overtime.
“If he didn’t make that huge save in that instance, or even the save he made on their fourth shooter,” Miele said, “we wouldn’t have still been in the position to win that game.
“It’s like déjà vu to two years ago losing here to Kiski. Losing in PKs, though, it’s such a tough way to go out.”
The Leopards snatched momentum just under 15 minutes into the first-round matchup when Sassak opened the scoring.
Tyler Kovatch made a great run down the right sideline and sent a pass to Sassak’s feet.
The impressive junior used a couple of soft touches to weave around an Indians defender, get into the 18-box and fire a shot past Fefolt to make it 1-0.
“Daniel made a really great move there to get the opening goal,” Miele said. “But we always talk about after a goal, the next five minutes or so are huge. You try to get another one quickly, but if you give up one, that can hurt you.”
That’s exactly what happened.
Just 1:45 after Sassak’s goal, Glaser got the equalizer for the Indians on a free kick from 20 yards out.
“That’s not the first time that’s happened to us this year. Getting a goal then giving one up shortly after,” Miele said. “I can’t put my finger on it. They said the ball went through the wall, which shouldn’t happen because that’s why the wall is there. It’s an unfortunate break and it killed the momentum.”
As the game went on, the physicality went up.
Each team was whistled for its share of fouls, but the Leopards seemed to carry the bulk of the play in the midfield and their offensive third.
The Leopards fired 22 shots at the net, 13 on goal not counting the PKs.
The Indians had 10 shots on goal, 18 overall at the frame.
“I think we kind of controlled them offensively. We had the run of the play in the midfield,” Miele said. “We really struggled in the final third. When we got there, we were trying to cross the ball and get it where it needed to be, to the goal line and playing it to the keeper. I mean, (Fefolt’s) 6-foot whatever and we were playing it into him high. I don’t think we were all the way checked in at times. We were just making silly mistakes and silly decisions with the ball.”
The pressure the Leopards mounted led to 10 corner-kick opportunities, but they couldn’t cash in.
In the two 15-minute overtime periods, especially the second, the teams went back and forth with their opportunities. None was bigger than Glaser’s breakaway chance that Watson stopped.
“It’s kind of like watching 3-on-3 hockey, we were just trading chances,” Miele said. “You just hope you don’t give up a goal, then you get the ball and you’re hoping you get your goal. I thought we had a couple really good chances in overtime and we just couldn’t finish.”
The attrition faced by both teams mirrored the tumultuous season all teams have faced. Miele said he couldn’t be prouder of his team, a sentiment echoed by the seniors who spoke to their teammates after the game.
“This group’s been through a lot,” Miele said. “This team’s been relatively the same for the past two years. To come in with the expectations we had, then the offseason and we weren’t sure what was going on because of the COVID stuff, then getting to play but going through all these protocols. And they did it. They went out and won another section championship.
“These guys, to an extent, put their lives on hold for three months other than coming to soccer. I thought these seniors did a fantastic job leading this team.”