A mixture of sadness, resignation and anger gripped the Fayetteville-Manlius boys soccer team as the final seconds of Saturday’s Class AA regional final against Shenendehowa at Liverpool High School Stadium ticked down.
On the one hand, the Hornets had gone through one of the best seasons in program history, with an undefeated, untied regular season and a strong run to the Section III championship.
“It was an unbelievable season,” said head coach Jeff Hammond. “They battled every day.”
But on the other hand, F-M badly wanted a state championship – and now the Plainsmen, with a steady all-around effort and a breathtaking goal late in the second half, had snuffed out those dreams in a 1-0 defeat.
Some players found it difficult to fight tears. Others took out their frustrations on officials, with Tysen Tresness getting a red card second after the final horn, convinced that he was fouled on a run midway through the second half, when the game was 0-0, and should have taken a penalty kick.
Whatever the feelings, the result was the same – the sudden end to a dream one victory short of a trip to the state final four in Middletown, and three wins short of the ultimate prize F-M wanted.
With a rich soccer history and tough competition from the Section II Suburban Council, Shenendehowa provided a formidable opponent, and F-M knew that it would need one of its best efforts of the season against the Plainsmen to get through this regional hurdle.
“They keep the ball well and are very technical,” said Hammond.
Shen preferred a possession game, but F-M mostly kept them from it during a 0-0 first half and enjoyed most of the good scoring chances.
None was better than Mike Myagkota’s low shot in the 16th minute that got past Plainsmen goalkeeper Liam O’Brien, but glanced off the right post. Adam Bem had a close look in the 30th minute, too, but O’Brien grabbed it.
“We had some decent chances,” said Hammond. “We just couldn’t convert.”
As it went into the second half, Shen gained more confidence and, utilizing that possession game, made longer runs into the Hornets’ end. At first, defenders Connor Snow, Seth Epling and Christian Bagabo did a strong job turning those chances away, but the Plainsmen kept pushing.
Tresness, meanwhile, kept getting thwarted in all of his opportunities, none more controversial than the time he was tripped in the 60th minute inside the 18-yard box. Hammond and Tresness wondered about a foul and, when they protested too much, they both got yellow cards.
Still, the game was 0-0, and drifting toward overtime, when F-M committed turnover deep inside its end with 6:38 to play. That left Shen’s Michael Miner 20 yards out, from a steep angle to the left side, with a chance at a shot, even if it was a low-percentage one.
Somehow, with a side-winding swing of his left leg, Miner hit a perfect shot, full of velocity and precision. Obrist could only watch as the ball crashed into the net, just inside the top right corner.
Faced with a deficit, F-M kept on battling and did get a couple of late free kicks. Shen turned them away, though, and the Plainsmen earned the trip to Middletown that F-M, and its fans, were convinced would be theirs.
