The McCallie soccer team needed a wake-up call Friday.
A first-half deficit provided that, and the Blue Tornado eventually responded in their Division II-AA state quarterfinal against visiting Brentwood Academy. McCallie won 3-1 in overtime and earned its third consecutive trip to the Spring Fling in Murfreesboro.
The Tornado, ranked second in the state, trailed 1-0 at halftime but quickly equalized in the second half with a goal by Thomas Priest. Then Andre Roberts and Drew Viscomi scored in extra time.
McCallie (12-1-4) will face Christian Brothers, which defeated Baylor 2-0 in another quarterfinal.
The Blue Tornado defeated Brentwood Academy 4-0 on May 4, but the Eagles (9-5-2) bunched up the middle of the field Friday to try to slow the McCallie attack. Not only did it work, but it got them the lead on a goal by Jackson Gregory. They took the 1-0 edge into halftime despite being outshot 10-3.
"They stuffed a lot of numbers in the middle of the field," McCallie coach Chris Cushenbery said. "We didn't want to adjust and conceded an early goal. It definitely wasn't the start we wanted."
The Blue Tornado tied the match in the 44th minute on a rebound goal by Priest and continued their pressure on the Eagles' defense. They weren't able to penetrate the tight spaces until the first extra 10-minute overtime when Roberts successfully followed up a shot in the box, and Viscomi put the match away with some fancy footwork and a laser shot from right outside the 18-yard mark.
"Did we need it? Last year it was not a super competitive quarterfinal game, and we welcome any opportunity to improve," Cushenbery said. "They showed us some things we needed to improve.
"We're grateful for a tough game, because they showed us some things we need to get better."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.