Kelvin Zinck scored the tying goal and then buried the clincher in a shootout as Hagerty defeated host Olympia 5-3 in a penalty-kicks tiebreaker after the two powers played to a 1-1 tie in regulation and overtime in their Class 5A, Region 1 boys soccer quarterfinal on Wednesday night.
In the shootout, every Hagerty (14-2-2) shooter converted his shot while Huskies goalkeeper Abdul Muqeet saved Olympia’s first attempt to clinch the victory.
“Amazing,” Hagerty goalkeeper Abdul Muqeet said of the pulsating victory. “I couldn’t have done it without everybody here.”
Hagerty advances to a region semifinal for the first time in program history. The Huskies will play at district rival Lake Mary (20-5-1) on Saturday night. The Rams won 1-0 against visiting West Orange (12-3-2) on a goal by Nazar Tsaruk.
“We need to change some formations, putting different players in different spots,” Zinck said of the rematch against Lake Mary, which was runner-up to the Huskies in last week’s district tournament. “(Lake Mary used) Wide players, switching the ball side to side, putting the ball in the box, causing issues for our defensive players.”
Hagerty gained revenge over Olympia (16-3-3), which was ranked No. 1 in Sentinel Super Six area rankings. The Titans ousted the Huskies 3-2 in a region quarterfinal last year.
Olympia’s Beto Yorach and Hagerty’s Kelvin Zinck each scored on penalty kicks three minutes apart in the second half.
Both teams struggled to finish chances most of the match due to persistent defense.
Olympia maintained good pressure through most of the match. Hagerty kept going for the occasional lightning strike, though as the match wore on, the Huskies put more and more pressure on Olympia.
“All credit to Hagerty and their coaching staff for playing a really smart game against us,” Olympia coach Lou Romao said. “The ball doesn’t roll the way you want it to, and we missed them. They played us to the end. Penalty kicks end up being luck of the draw. This year, they got the luck of the draw.”
That constant pressure kept both keepers busy most of the match. Muqeet posted a strong performance, making six saves in regulation and overtime. Defender Stuart Boyd also came up big, making a save when an Olympia shot went past Muqeet.
“Keep them down, everyone play good: That’s how we win,” Muqeet said.
Olympia keeper Cole Calvert finished regulation and overtime with four saves, including a couple diving saves. He filled in for starter Paul DeHart, who was suspended two games because of an incident at the end of the Dr. Phillips game.
Calvert also had to rely on a defender to make a save, with Yorach delivering midway through the second half when Park Wickizer outdueled the keeper, then shot. Yorach raced in to kick Wickizer’s shot wide.
In the shootout, every Hagerty shooter converted his shot, while Muqueet blocked Yorach in Olympia’s first attempt to clinch the victory.
“(Yorach) scored on me last time, I was like it’s not happening,” Muqeet said. “Senior year’s not over yet. We’ll continue this run. I knew which way he was going.
“I knew because of the last time. He was playing mind games, thinking I was going the other way, thinking he’d switch his shot.”