Small breaks is all it takes

MARION — An undefeated team, at home, looking for its third sectional title.

A goalkeeper that had only let the ball slip past him five times on the year.

An offense that has scored 78 times between the regular season and the first two games of the sectional tournament.

The Patriots needed to play their best game to pick off the Panthers.

The defense showed up, but still a few balls found their way to the net.

The Panthers locked down the all-time leading scorer, but the rest of the offense found ways to match their opponents.

Without either team finding a way to score in the overtime periods, the championship would be decided by penalty kicks.

It turns out, a few small breaks is all it takes.

The Jay County High School boys soccer team took home its second sectional title in three years as it made four of five penalty kicks, while the hosting Eastbrook Panthers only made three in the IHSAA Class 2A Sectional 23 final on Saturday night for the 3-2 victory.

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JCHS boys soccer sectional final vs. Eastbrook (10/12/2024)

Eastrook (14-1-3) finished 13th in the final Indiana Soccer Coaches Association voting poll and went undefeated prior to the matchup with Jay County (14-2) while outsourcing opponents 78-5. The last time Eastbrook hosted the sectional, back in 2018, the Panthers took home the title.

Jay County claimed its sixth sectional championship in 2022, while falling in the final to Mississinewa 2-1 in 2023. First-year head coach Rondey Reynolds and his squad reclaimed the title with the upset. The win earns them a date in the regional opener at Park Tudor on Thursday.

“Everything you could possibly picture has been in my head,” Reynolds said. “I can’t say enough about this team. They fought and they fought and they fought and they fought, even when they were tired they just kept fighting.

“We told them all week long, ‘You’ve got to find it. You’ve got to find your innermost inside and make it come out when you’re tired.’ And they did.

“They found the will to win. That’s what it is.”

The Patriots had to be nearly perfect with their penalty kicks to come out on top.

After winning the coin toss, they chose to kick first. Levi Muhlenkamp started things off with a shot to the bottom right half and Dylan Marentes followed up to hit the second shot for Jay County in the bottom left.

When Aryan Montes stepped up to the spot, his kick didn’t go as well, as the Eastbrook goalkeeper, Reid Aupperle, made the save. After Montes had walked back, the assistant referee ruled that Aupperle left the goal line early, awarding the JCHS sophomore another shot.

Montes took advantage of the second attempts, getting the ball further from the middle of the net and closer to the left post for the score.

“I was so happy and nervous, because I didn’t want to miss again,” Montes said. “I hit it harder and more to the side, because the first time it was more towards the middle and he was able to get to it easier.”

Cayden Buckland nailed the fourth Patriot PK with a shot to the top right corner, before freshman Jaxson DeHoff’s shot sailed high off the crossbar. Jay County was nearly perfect with four of five penalty kicks, but it got the job done.

Defensively, Jay County needed a similar effort. On the five penalty shots taken by Eastbrook, Peyton Yowell correctly guessed the direction on four of them. While he didn’t manage to get a hand on the ball, the threat caused a pair of misses by the Panthers.

“It’s stressful … terrifying,” Yowell said. “I know that we have good penalty kickers on our team, but part of it’s up to me. They have a goalie that’s really good and I needed to play my part. … It’s milliseconds that you have to react. Watching their hips is mostly where it comes from.”

The first shot came from Isaiah Ross, who got it past Yowell’s outstretched arms on the left side.

Graeson Secrest took the second shot, which sailed wide right of the goal, with the JCHS junior right there to make an attempt if it was within the posts.

Yowell’s sole wrong guess came on Draven Collins’ kick, as he jumped left and the ball found the right half of the net.

Jesus Marin put the ball in the top right corner, past Yowell, but Sam Moser’s shot wound up wide left, failing to force sudden death and giving the Patriots the title.

Jay County needed that level of near-perfection in regulation as well.

While the defensive line consisting of Montes, Ashton Castillo, Iker Nelson and Brenden Runyon limited opportunities for the Panthers, they still found ways to score.

The first came four minutes into the game, as Marin laced a shot into the top left corner of the goal from 35 yards out.

With 30 minutes, 32 seconds remaining in the second half, Ross delivered a free kick from 35 yards out to Jonathan Olson, who headed the ball in for a 2-1 advantage.

Yowell made seven saves on the Panthers, and got some breaks as a pair of shots clanged off the crossbar (one late in the second half and other in the closing seconds of the second overtime).

“This is a talented group of guys,” said EHS coach Adam Hallis. “Everyone on that field, offensively, has the ability to score. … We’re just unlucky tonight with the post a little bit. There’s a few that (were) a couple of inches (off), but it’s a game of inches.”

It took JCHS 12 minutes to answer the first goal. On the second corner kick of the day, Marentes sent the ball in the direction of Muhlenkamp and Montes. The latter used his height – standing at 6 feet, 3 inches, Montes was the second tallest player between both teams — he got off a clean header for the goal.

The Patriots caught another break to help score their second goal.

As the clock ticked down, Jay County faced elimination if they couldn’t tie the game up. Marentes got fouled by Ross just outside of the 18-yard box with only 2:27 remaining in the game. Marentes sent the direct free kick towards the line of defending Panthers and while the ball traveled, Aupperle got in position for the save. However, the ball ricocheted off of one of the Eastbrook defenders, and redirected to the right half of the goal without enough time for the goalkeeper to adjust, tying the game with 1:56 remaining.

“It’s unbelievable how Dylan tied that game,” Reynolds said. “That shot was crazy. He found a will and a way. You couldn’t ask for a more perfect shot at the right time.”

Next up, Jay County will travel to Indianapolis on Thursday to face off with the No. 6 Park Tudor Panthers at 6 p.m. A victory over PTHS would punch a ticket to the regional final on Oct. 19 at Concordia Lutheran against the winner of Northwestern and West Lafayette, which finished 11th in the ISCA poll.

“The biggest thing is just a shout out to these kids, their families and my assistant coaches,” Reynolds closed with. “They’re wonderful. I couldn’t do it without them. It takes a team to win, and I think we have a team here.

“Next up is going to be a challenge. You’re talking a very good team, but we’re going to go out there and give it everything we’ve got.”