Time and time again Walker Valley had a chance to put the soccer ball in the back of the net Thursday night at Ooltewah but could not get one to go. That was until Mustangs used their head.
The Mustangs finally broke the scoreless tie and defeated the Owls 1-0 on a Sam McDonald header in the second half of overtime of the District 5-AAA game.
"I give it to Ooltewah for coming out and playing a great game," Walker Valley coach Tom Bayliss said. "Both sides deserve a lot of credit, but I didn't expect the game to go into overtime. Our shots just weren't falling, and when we get that many shots if we make a few it's a different game, but I'm proud of our guys."
Walker Valley (6-1-1, 3-1) controlled throughout and had multiple opportunities to put points on the board, but several shots were just off target and Ooltewah keeper Jonas Camp made five saves.
Sam Gibson's set piece just outside the box in the first overtime rocked the top of the post before falling right in front of the net, where Camp corralled it to keep the game alive.
But Ooltewah (3-4-1, 2-3) could not hold off the visitors forever. Sam Gruber's corner kick with 3:36 remaining in the second half of overtime found McDonald's head in the box. where he was able to put it right past the keeper for the "golden goal" and the win.
"Honestly, we don't do as much free-kick practice as we want to," Bayliss coach said. "But on a free kick like that it's about who wants it the most. Fortunately, it just got through and it finds McDonald's head and stays on frame that time."
Walker Valley had 20 shots, with six on goal. David Camacho-Ordaz led the team with six shots.
The Owls stayed in it beyond the scheduled end.
"I'm extremely proud of them," Ooltewah coach Rick Adolph said. "They put a lot of heart in this game, and they battled. I don't think a lot of teams were going to give us much of a chance tonight based on how things went early on in the season, but we've been improving. We created some great chances, but someone's got to win."
Contact Anthony Sigismond at sports@timesfreepress.com