Split decision
KARNS CITY — Karns City and Brookville gave it all they had— and then some.
But when Jarren Ross fired back a deflection off Gremlins goalie Derek Sadowski with 42 seconds left in the first overtime, the Raiders came away with a 2-1 victory in the District 9 Class A boys soccer quarterfinals at Karns City High Thursday.
In the girls Class A quarterfinal game, the Gremlins edged Curwensville 2-1 to advance to the semifinals, where they will face Brookville at a site, day and time to be determined.
"We lost to (the Raiders) in double overtime the first time we played them," said Karns City coach Roy Parker. "We knew it would come to that. The trick was whether the whole defense could handle the pressure, and I think they did."
The Gremlins (13-4-1) were led by goalkeeper Derek Sadowski, who made 14 saves on the night, the last on a rapid-fire shot from left side of the net by Brookville's Seth Connor.
Sadowski made the stop, but the ball headed straight for Ross, who drove it by Sadowski for the win.
"I was screened toward the end of regulation and in overtime," said Raiders coach Dan Smith. "We had guys locking up, running out of gas, a lot of charley horses.
"Seth basically saved it and put it on the net, and it came off the keeper's hands. I could hear it," Smith added.
The Gremlins jumped out to a 1-0 lead when Evan McGarvey scored with 21:20 left in the first half.
Patrick Vroman scored the equalizer for Brookville (12-6-2) with 9:46 left before the break when he split two defenders, then fired a shot. Sadowski blocked it, but the ball trickled away and into the net.
Brookville keeper Dan Ion was equal to the task, ringing up 11 saves.
"At the half, I told the kids I thought we outworked (Karns City)," Smith said. "I can't ever remember a game we can say we outworked them."
"We started out with 16 kids. That really hurt us," Parker said. "We were a little light in depth, but in the long run, this will help the young kids."
Emily Olszak's goal with 34:55 left in the game broke a 1-all tie and the Gremlins' defense made it stand in the 2-1 victory over Curwensville (8-10).The goal was Olszak's second of the game. She also scored with 26:24 left in the first half to give Karns City (15-4) the early lead.Taylor Bumbarger, who also kicks for the Curwensville football team, tied the game with 2:11 left before the break when she powered a shot from 35 feet away over the outstretched arms of Gremlins goalie Lauren Downs."We moved Taylor from the wing to midfield," said Golden Tide coach Gary Thorp. "She does hit it from long range."At halftime, Karns City coach Lisa Castiglione didn't want her young team to lose focus."I had to calm them down," she said. "That goal rattled us. We had to get into our style of play and put the ball on the ground."The Gremlins came out for the second half a little more energized and took the lead for good on Olszak's goal.The defense took it from there. Downs finished with four saves while her counterpart, Brittany Carter, had eight saves.The two teams met in the fourth game of the season, which Karns City won 2-1 on the road.
