Chase Reed ran off the field, grabbed a sip of water, splashed some more water on his face and ran back to the line to check back in. The Boyd-Buchanan forward had just sealed his team’s Region 3-A/AA soccer semifinal victory over East Ridge with a goal, but there was more work to do.
Reed scored the fourth-ranked Buccaneers’ clinching goal and created numerous opportunities with his speed, pacing a 2-0 win that puts them in the region championship game Thursday night against eighth-ranked Hixson, a 3-0 victor over McMinn Central.
Revenge played a factor for Boyd-Buchanan, which had its 2009 season end at the hands of the Pioneers last year.
“We really wanted to get this game,” Reed said. “Revenge was big for us.”
Said Bucs coach Jason Owens: “The guys remembered last year and didn’t want the season to end here.”
Reed’s goal off a feed from Taylor Shull was a long time coming, as he spent most of the game on the right wing fighting past the East Ridge defense. Boyd-Buchanan as a whole came out aggressively and had solid chances on goal throughout the game.
Ian Pilgrim just missed a header off a cross from Joey Glisson in the first half, and Shull had a header that slid just wide.
In the second half, a Glisson header off a Mason Wortman corner kick glanced off the crossbar. Finally, in the 48th minute, Ben Beasley fired a throw-in to an oncoming Clint Babb, whose header found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.
East Ridge’s Amel Sahbaz and Alfonso Lopez missed shots, and with six minutes remaining, Reed had his goal.
“Chase has always been an athletic player,” Owens said. “He’s starting to realize how to play as a team.
“He was fantastic tonight.”
East Ridge finished the season 9-7-3.
“I thought the guys fought until the end,” Pioneers coach Jeremy McIntyre said. “This season was the most fun I’ve ever had with a group. The guys were awesome and we had great leadership.”
* Region 3-AAA: Cleveland advanced to its fourth consecutive Region 3-AAA final with a 3-0 home victory over Coffee County. Wes Llosa, Sterling Hines and Shane Butler had goals for the Blue Raiders (10-7-3), who will visit Cookeville for the championship Thursday.
The Cavaliers defeated McMinn County in the other semifinal.