Twenty-six seconds isn’t much time in any sport. In soccer, it passes quickly, and at the end of games, it seems quicker, especially for the team trailing.

Such was the situation for Westhill, who had controlled most of last Tuesday night’s showdown with visiting Marcellus, yet was behind by a goal and was staring at its second defeat in as many weeks following an 11-0 start.

Then, in those last 26 seconds, everything changed, and instead of a disheartening loss, Warriors players were celebrating a 2-1 victory with students who poured onto the field at the conclusion of this remarkable match.

Things really began to heat up early in the second half. Prior to that, state Class B no. 6-ranked Westhill had controlled most of the flow of play, only to have state no. 10-ranked Marcellus ably turn them back.

Then, in the 47th minute, a Mustangs handball inside the 18-yard box gave the Warriors a penalty kick. Connor Schwartz took it, and hit it up the middle – enough so that Marcellus goalie Sam Hayduke could make a diving stop with his foot.

Charged up by that stop, the Mustangs continued to resist and wait for a chance of its own. It came with 12:36 to play when David Bosak, off a feed from Dakota Baker, shot from the point, a low and hard shot past a diving John Geer just inside the left post.

Now protecting a 1-0 lead, Marcellus had plenty of possession time as the second half wound down, but Westhill got it back and, with less than a minute left, had one more corner kick, and it had struggled with set pieces throughout the game.

Here, though, with Geer making himself an 11th attacker, a wild scramble ensued in front of the net. From the left point, Jack Grooms got possession and took a low, quick shot that went through all the bodies, eluded Hayduke and fit inside the right post.

That goal, with 26 seconds left, tied it 1-1 and both sides looked ahead to overtime – until a Marcellus foul gave Westhill a free kick from midfield, the clock stopped with seven seconds to play.

The ball flew into the crowd of players, and the officials spotted a Mustangs push inside the penalty area with just three seconds left. Again, a penalty kick was awarded, and Bo BenYehuda didn’t miss, the freshman firing it into the left side of the net for the game-winner.

Westhill couldn’t celebrate too much, though, for a tough game at Chittenango loomed Thursday night, and the Warriors again had to go all 80 minutes to pull out a close victory, though the 1-0 decision over the Bears didn’t require last-minute heroics.

Instead, the game’s lone goal came in the first half, with David McPeak scoring it. For the rest of the game, Westhill could not get anything past Chittenango goalie Noah Schnauffer, who had nine saves. Chittenango got held to just three shots, though.

Marcellus rebounded at home on Thursday night by defeating Mexico 3-0. Twice in the first half and again in the second half, Bosak’s passes set up goals as Sam Grattan, Noah LeFever and Josh Wilkinson took turns converting.

Then the Section III Class B playoff pairings were revealed, and if Westhill, the top seed, and Marcellus, the no. 3 seed, get through three rounds of elimination games, they’ll meet again with the sectional title at stake.

It will start Wednesday night with the Warriors against no. 16 seed Mexico and the Mustangs against no. 14 seed General Brown. Westhill would meet Chittenango or Camden in the quarterfinals, with Marcellus getting Clinton or Oneida.