The plot said odds were against Revere girls soccer; no one told the Minutemen in OT win
Sometimes the will outweighs a script that says there shouldn’t be a way.
The ninth-seeded Revere girls soccer team was the favorite on paper against 12th-seeded Westlake on Thursday in a Division I, Elyria 6 Sectional final.
It finished that way when the Minutemen beat the Demons 3-2 on an overtime goal by Zsofia Jakab.
But here’s the rub for Revere:
* Starters Dylan Meech, Olivia Jakab and Emily Garlesky missed the game for a myriad of reasons.
* Leading scorer Kayla Smith left in the second half with leg cramps and didn’t return.
* It was almost raining sideways for most of the second half and overtime.
No sweat for the Minutemen (12-4-1), who play at third-seeded Highland (16-0-2) on Monday in a Suburban League American Conference rematch.
“We just wanted to win and put everything into it,” Zsofia Jakab said. “We knew we had to fight for it. We just kept going. Even with people out, we knew we could do it.”
More: Photos: Revere girls soccer defeats Westlake 3-2 in overtime
How Zsofia Jakab scored the game-winner for Revere girls soccer
And do it they did when Hailey Janke sent a ball into the box.
Jakab beat two defenders to the cross, slid toward the goal and put it past Demons keeper Kylie Colacarro with 7:05 left in the first overtime.
“I couldn’t be any prouder. They worked their socks off. I honestly think we dominated the game,” Minutemen coach Dave Howson said after Revere outshot Westlake 11-4. "A couple of mistakes allowed Westlake to score a couple of goals over the 87 minutes. I think we were the better team and deserved to win. It’s an absolute testament to them that they can deal with so many injuries and so many setbacks and put in a performance like that to win the game.”
Revere's equalizer in regulation turned the game on its ear
While the third goal will deservedly get all the headlines, it was goal No. 2 to knot things up that really turned the tide.
The Demons (10-6-1) made the most of their chances on goals by Allison Tabeling and Mirabella Zingales to take a 2-1 halftime lead. Revere was playing on tired legs, which didn’t allow Howson to sub until the second half.
Then the spark hit on the equalizer and Revere kicked things into another gear. Janke pushed the ball up to Jakab and she tied things up with 15:11 left.
“Kayla Smith is a really good leader, so when she went out, I think a lot of people were like, ‘What are we going to do now?” Janke said. “We have so much chemistry with each other that I don’ think anyone doubted us for a second. We did have to step up with our No. 1 scorer out. Zsofia really stepped up, and that’s great for the future because Kayla is a senior. It’s important to learn how to work without our leader sometimes.”
By the way, Janke opened the scoring for Revere with 15:52 left before halftime.
Storyline for district semifinal between Revere and Highland writes itself
The win brings an interesting district semifinal at Highland.
The Hornets beat Revere 5-0 on Sept. 27 to essentially wrap up the league title.
Highland hasn’t lost to the Minutemen since dropping a 4-0 decision Aug. 31, 2016, and is 5-0-2 since then.
“It’s the old cliché, isn’t it?” Howson said. “It’s a playoff game and anything can happen. They’re certainly going to be the favorites. They’ve had a fantastic season and have a great squad. They beat us 5-0 earlier in the season, but I think we have a point to prove. We played that game with 10 players for 63 minutes (due to a red card). Hopefully we can give a better account for ourselves when we have 11 players for that game.”
Contact Brad Bournival at bbournival@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @bbournival
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: OHSAA playoff girls soccer: Zsofia Jakab's overtime goal lifts Revere
