NORTH ROYALTON—Beachwood used a penalty kick shootout to defeat Norwayne in a Division IV regional semifinal on Wednesday, 3-2.
The Bison and Bobcats finished regulation tied at 2-2 before Beachwood scored on four of five penalty kick tries to advance to a third straight regional championship.
“We do (PK shootouts) at the end of practice when our legs are tired,” said Beachwood head coach Brian Greene. “We’ve done it every day for the last month to prepare for it. We use the punishment of conditioning to create some pressure. I got nothing but respect for Norwayne.”
Grant Keilin, Asher Gearity, Daniel Park, and Leo Wang all connected on penalty kicks, and Josh Rosenblitt came away with the game-winning save on Norwayne’s fifth PK try.
During the first half, it was the Grant Keilin Show as the senior captain connected on a 15th-minute penalty kick and a breakaway strike in the 33rd minute to give the Bison a 2-0 lead at the break.
Norwayne found a lifeline in the second half with a Parker Metsker throw-in, which led to a Cooper Ringle header in the 70th minute.
In the 78th minute, Metsker connected with RIngle once again to deliver an equalizer off the header try.
“(Kyle Bennett) had to leave the game with a concussion,” Greene said. “He’s the anchor of our defense. (Norwayne) They didn’t really beat us with soccer; those were just long throw-ins that we didn’t clear. Ultimately, I think my boys were ready, and they handled a lot. Some of them grew up tonight. I’m really proud of them.”
The two sides battled through a pair of tense sudden-victory overtime periods, leading to the decisive penalty kick shootout.
The first three Bison connected, Keilin, Gearity, and Park, with Norwayne’s Ringle, Connor Preattle, and Jon Graham matching Beachwood shot for shot.
Each side missed its fourth try, setting up Wang and Rosenblitt to be the heroes for Beachwood.
“I just tried not to think about it too much,” Wang said. “We practice this every day. I didn’t change where I was going to kick it based on the goalkeeper, so I just kept all the thoughts out and went for it.”
Josh Rosenblitt, who made the match-ending save on Norwayne’s final penalty kick, added: “I saw (Jonah Greller) miss, so I knew I had to get his back. I guessed right, got the ball off a good part of my hand.”
With the win, the Bison will play in their fifth regional championship game in the past 10 years.
Winning the regional title has been the only thing standing in the way of Beachwood qualifying for the Final Four.
“We’ve never gone past this,” coach Greene said. “This group is determined and capable. Starting off as the one seed out of 50 teams adds pressure. ‘Heavy is the weight on the shoulders of the man who wears the crown.’”
The Bison will face Poland Seminary in the Division IV, Region 13 championship on November 3 at Niles McKinley Stadium.
