Stow triumphs over Uniontown Lake in Extra Time Thriller to advance to District Semifinal
On a cold Saturday night, Stow opened up their postseason with a Sectional Final matchup against the Blue Streaks of Uniontown Lake. After a very impressive regular season, the Bulldogs received the #8 seed and a first round bye, while Lake is coming off a 7-0 Semifinal victory over Akron Ellet.
The Bulldogs opened up the match with Sophomore Midfielder Mateo Garduno finding the net in the 15th minute of the first half, taking the 1-0 advantage. The remainder of the 1st half was back and forth, with Stow’s defense led by Garduno, Ethan Kinkoph, Joshua Marcinick shutting down the Blue Streak offense. However, the Blue Streaks were able to find the net in the 37th minute on an own goal credited to Junior Vincent Giganti to knot the score 1-1 going into halftime.
In the final half of play, Stow’s offense led by Reece Raymond-Smith, Carson Boyd, Davis Broghammer, Amari Darrow, and Farris Amawi stayed very aggressive, looking to put the match away. Lake took the lead in the 68th minute of the match with a header goal by Giganti to give the blue streaks the lead. With the advantage now flipped and 11 minutes left in regulation, the Bulldogs needed an answer to keep their season alive. With 7 minutes left in the match, the Bulldogs found the net off a corner kick from Farris Amawi to Reece Raymond-Smith to force a golden goal extra time period.
The night ended with Raymond-Smith finding the net once again off a rebound with 5 minutes left of extra time to secure the Bulldogs victory over the Blue Streaks and a ticket to the District Semifinal. Once the ball broke the line, every Bulldog in the stadium rejoiced while respecting their opponent, who played a phenomenal match.
The Bulldogs will travel to University School in Hunting Valley to take on the Preppers for a chance to advance to District Finals.