For the second time in less than a week, a late goal sent the Cougar soccer team down to defeat, and this time it ended their season.
The Cougars and the Ohio County Eagles fought each other to a 1-1 tie after 80 minutes of end-to-end action in the opener of the 3rd Region Boys Soccer Tournament, forcing the game into a sudden-death overtime period.
With a little more than a minute remaining in the overtime period, the Eagles’ Chris Logsdon took a pass from J. D. Nolte and ripped a shot past Grayson County goal keeper Colton Cockriel to allow the Eagles to advance to the semi-final round of the tournament.
For the Cougars, it was another bitter defeat after playing a magnificent game against a superior opponent. Last week, the Cougars lost to Meade County on a goal with under two minutes left in the 11th District final.
The loss to the Eagles brought to a close the most successful boys soccer season in school history. Grayson County ended the year with a record of 12-7-1. Ohio County moved to 14-1-4 with the win.
The two teams took turns pressuring the other team’s goal in the first 20 minutes of play. Grayson County had a good chance in the ninth minute of play when senior Presley Cilyok got behind the Eagle defense and took a ball in on Eagle goalie Jonathan Wortham. But Cilyok may have rushed his shot a bit and sent it sailing over the Eagle goal.
The Eagles had a couple of opportunities as well, with Nolte getting two shots at the Cougar goal, both of which went well wide.
It was the Eagles, though, who got on the board first, courtesy of a Cougar defensive mistake. In the 23rd minute, the Eagles sent a ball into the box in front of the Cougar goal. The ball took a high hop and struck the arm of Cougar defender Max Cabe.
Cabe was whistled for a handball in the penalty area, and Ohio County was awarded a penalty kick. Nolte took the kick for the Eagles and beat Cockriel on his right side to put Ohio County on top 1-0.
Grayson County got the equalizer just a few minutes later. In the 30th minute, sophomore Bradley Stone won the ball in the Cougar end of the field and sent a long pass ahead. Cilyok beat his man to the ball and took it in on Wortham. This time Cilyok timed his shot perfectly and beat Wortham on his right side and the game was knotted at 1-1.
The score sstayed that way the rest of the half, though the Eagles were denied on a couple of point-blank shots at the end.
With less than two minutes left in the half, the Eagles had the ball close to the Cougar goal. Cockriel blocked the first shot, which came from just a couple of yards out. He then knocked a away a quick rebound shot and the Cougars were able to clear the ball out and preserve the tie.
Both teams had close encounters with the goal in the second half, but neither could get anything home. In the 46th minute, Cilyok again got behind the Eagle defense, but this time Wortham was able to deflect the shot wide of the goal.
In the 60th minute, a pass into the Cougar goal bounced past Cockriel and was headed for the net, but defender Josh Willis was right at the goal line to boot the ball out of harm’s way.
In the five-minute, sudden-death overtime, the Eagles had a couple of opportunities, but both of Nolte’s shots sailed over the top of the goal. But in the fourth minute of play, with the ball on the right side of the Cougar goal, Nolte sent a pass forward that split two Cougar defenders and Logsdon got his foot to the ball and sent it home for the game-winner.
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