Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
JACKSON — After Minford and South Webster split their two-game series during the regular season, Wednesday’s Division V regional semifinal between the two was sure to be an instant classic.
And to the Falcons and Jeeps’ credit, the match did what rarely happens … it more than lived up to the hype.
While each defense took center stage for the majority of the evening, the night’s only score came on a penalty kick from Minford’s Ethan Cordle, allowing the Falcons (17-3) to soar to a 1-0 victory and into their first trip to the Elite 8 since 2008.
“There’s a lot of negativity around Minford over the past 20 years. That’s especially true right now with some things that are going on,” Hackworth said. “But maybe our soccer programs can be a light to our community. We’ve got the mini-pitch coming next April, the girls just won the league, we just won our third district title in the past four years, I mean you can’t ask anything else of these kids and what they’re doing for their community. We know they’re behind us one-hundred percent.”
CREDIT: Erica Fike/SOSA
With the schools being close rivals, it was expected to be a big-time atmosphere on the brightest stage, and there were nearly fireworks within the first five minutes for both teams.
South Webster (15-5-1) began the early action with a push forward from Hunter Barnard and Brycin McClintic, but their initial shot was deflected away.
On the opposite side, Minford’s Myles Montgomery played a cross from the right side into the box that met the foot of teammate Peyton Caudill. The junior ripped a shot towards the goal, but South Webster’s Sam Murphy smothered the attempt to calm an exciting opening five-minute barrage from each offense.
A few moments later, the Jeeps got their best look of the half when Barnard split a trio of defenders before putting a right-footed shot on target. But, as usual, Minford’s Kade Glockner made a diving save to corral the sharp shot.
“We knew [South Webster’s] scheme and what they were going to do,” Hackworth said. “A lot of it was keeping possession. It was one versus three or four against [SW’s Hunter] Barnard and he still almost had a goal early. But Kade [Glockner] has been a wall back there for us. He puts up another clean sheet against a good opponent. He’s been doing that all year long.”
The stalemate continued as both defenses raised their level of play. SW’s Beau Stephens and Cole Bennett helped control the Falcons’ attack, while Minford’s center backs of Max Lauder and Tate Johnson did all they could to slow down Barnard and the Jeeps.
Physical play defined much of the opening 40 minutes with both keepers making multiple standout saves to keep the score even at halftime.
As far as physicality goes, coming out of the break, more of the same took place.
However, Minford got the first huge break of the night.
Following a foul call near the right sideline, a free kick was awarded to the Falcons. On the free kick, the Jeeps were aggressive when looking to win the 50-50 ball. But while winning the ball, the defender was called for a foul against Minford’s Ty Borland, resulting in a penalty kick opportunity for the Falcons.
With 32:09 to play, Cordle not only calmly stepped to the spot, but actively worked to fire up his home crowd like an old pro. Once the ball was down, Cordle hammered his shot into the right side of the net to give the Falcons a 1-0 lead.
“I like getting our crowd involved and I feel like there’s no reason to be not confident on a PK,” Cordle said. “It should be a free goal. I always say that you need to know where you’re going with it before you kick the ball. You don’t need to look at the keeper, just know where you’re going.”
“He’s our guy, without a doubt,” Hackworth said. “There’s no question about it. He’s got ice in his veins and he’s done it for four years. He’s taken every one of those kicks. Credit to Ethan for that and the mentality that he carries.”
After the score, the Jeeps upped their intensity and aggressiveness, forcing the Falcons to have to raise their own defensive strategy.
But even so, the Jeeps were able to push the issue and make Glockner and company work.
It appeared that Barnard could finally break through as he got a shot off to the right of the goal with 23:30 to play, but Glockner was able to tip the shot just wide of the target.
That would be the Jeeps’ last great look.
Rather than parking the proverbial bus, the Falcons still worked for another chance to score with Montgomery. But South Webster’s Murphy made a brilliant diving save with 15 minutes left.
Following that opportunity, Minford focused on the defensive side by dropping Montgomery to play in the midfield with Ashton Reeder, Gavin Downey, Mark Napier and Cordle.
By dropping Montgomery and having Caudill up top, the Falcons were able to run some clock by unleashing the lightning-fast Caudill on the Jeeps’ backline. Caudill was unable to score, but the added pressure and speed helped chip away at the clock to provide ample chances for the Falcons to regroup defensively.
SW’s final push led to Barnard hitting Seth Hughes with a pass up the left side. But Minford was able to clear it and win the ensuing 50-50 ball to help set off the celebration.
While South Webster’s season comes to a close, Minford advances to a Division V regional final at 12 p.m. on Sunday in Logan. There, the Falcons will meet with Grandview Heights, a 4-0 winner over Berlin Hiland.
“We’re just grateful for another week to improve,” Hackworth said. “The last couple of weeks, we’ve just gone one day at a time. It’s been, ‘You have 80 minutes to decide what’s tomorrow. You have 80 minutes to decide whether you’re playing tomorrow or planning a banquet.’” To their credit, they told me they didn’t want to do fun drills last practice because they’re not done. That’s the mindset on this team.”
Scoring Summary
2nd Half – Ethan Cordle (penalty kick)
Stat book
Shots: Minford 14, South Webster 14
Saves: Minford 7 (Glockner 7), South Webster 9 (Murphy 9)
Fouls: Minford 14, South Webster 16
Corners: Minford 6, South Webster 6
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