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Shalom wins MDCC boys soccer title in OT


With 39 seconds left in regulation, every single Shalom player's head dropped.

Despite trailing for the majority of Saturday night's Mason-Dixon Christian Conference boys soccer championship, Broadfording managed to up the pressure and secure a goal to send the title game to overtime.

But no matter. It made the victory for the Flames feel all that much better.

Shalom dominated the overtime period, and just past the midway point, Tucker King sent a cross to Jonah Stains. The ball fumbled at Stains' feet ever so slightly before he tipped it past the Lions goalkeeper with his right toe for the game-winner. Shalom won, 2-1, to claim its second straight MDCC title.

"It felt so good to put that in," Stains said. "That goal with 39 seconds left, it made me angry. We had it, but they got one. But scoring in overtime actually made it feel a lot, lot better."

Shalom coach Chris Lehman said, "He's a hard worker, and he did a great job getting it to the right spot at the right time. He crashed the goal, and it was just a great finish. Great ending to the season."

Although Broadfording put a damper on Shalom's early celebration, it could've been much worse. The Lions put four players on the front line in the final 12 minutes of regulation, and it paid off. Broadfording peppered the Shalom defense and goalkeeper Travis West with shot after shot before Palmi Thorsson finally found the back of the net.

"We talk about not quitting and how adversity makes us stronger," Broadfording coach Scott Cox said. "We made a move toward the end, and I think that helped with putting the pressure on. We were trying to match up with them, and our kids just fought for that goal."

Lehman said, "Broadfording is a very good team, and they do a great job of possession and ball control. In the last 10 minutes, they had a lot of shots. Our defense just held strong, we won some loose balls and had some clears."

Senior Mikey White anchored the defense, and going into Saturday's matchup, he knew the Flames had one major job: Stop Thorsson.

"He was their leader in goals and assists, so we had to shut him down," White said. "They had a lot of speed, especially with (Brian An) and (Thorsson). I put my biggest guy on their biggest guy, and it seemed to turn out pretty well. I can't complain about the outcome."

Shalom held the lead for almost the entire game, as it took just 19 minutes for Chase Martin to bury one past Broadfording's goalkeeper. King was also credited with that assist.