The end of a season is often bitter anyway, and for the Notre Dame boys' soccer team, giving up the game-winning goal with just two minutes to play will leave an extra sting.
Central Magnet traveled to Notre Dame on Tuesday and nipped the Fighting Irish 3-2 in a Region 4-A/AA soccer semifinal. The Tigers overcame a 2-1 halftime deficit with two goals to bookend the second half and take the win.
While Central Magnet's possession created early chances, it was Notre Dame that used its opportunities more efficiently.
"I thought we played pretty well in the first half," Irish coach Jim Schermerhorn said. "We gave the ball away a little too easy but did well with our chances."
The Tigers had fired several shots before Milan Card got his agile feet on the ball for the Irish. Card controlled a pass on the left outskirts of the box and quickly slid the ball over to his right foot and tucked it inside the right post to open the scoring. It was Notre Dame's first shot.
With 18:22 to play in the first half, Justin Hensley extended the lead to 2-0 with a strong header off a corner kick. A late penalty, however, opened the door for Central Magnet.
Luis Sanchez was tripped up in the box to earn the foul and then converted on the ensuing penalty kick to cut the deficit with the clock ticking toward three minutes to go before halftime.
"We dropped off and gave them way too much space," Schermerhorn said. "Even after scoring those two goals, I feel like we gave them too much space on defense and didn't pressure the ball enough. We didn't do much better with that in the second half like we talked about."
Central Magnet sped out of the gates in the second half. Steven Falter collected a through ball out of the middle after only 30 seconds had burned off and put it in the back of the net to knot the score.
The Irish settled in to slow the momentum after the early goal and managed to keep the Tigers from taking the lead despite chances.
With 17:50 to play, Card drew a penalty for Notre Dame, but a save from Russell Harper kept the game tied.
"A big key for us was learning how to defend No. 17 (Card)," Tigers coach Ray Bennett said. "I think last year he was overshadowed a little bit, but we really got to see how dangerous he is. He created the penalty and scored a really nice goal in the first half."
The PK miss proved costly as Falter nicked a low corner kick to redirect it into the goal for the game winner to send Central Magnet to the region final.
"Even in the second half, there were a lot of opportunities we didn't convert, but given that much time with that many shots, eventually they're going to fall," Bennett said. "Fortunately, we got one to fall there at the end."
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com