Boys soccer: Neuqua Valley scraps for overtime triumph

The competition might get fiercer the deeper you go into the boys soccer postseason, but sometimes getting that first victory is as tough as any others.

It didn't come easy for Neuqua Valley during Wednesday's Class 3A Metea Valley regional semifinal against upset-minded East Aurora, but the Wildcats scored in overtime to win 1-0.

"I guess the first game is always the scrappy one," Wildcats senior defender Spencer Wiese said. "You've got to get that one out of the way and get momentum and then get the next one. I guess it wasn't a bad game, but we couldn't put our chances away."

Neuqua Valley (11-5-4) certainly created many chances, with William Heniades, Joshua Kolzow, Antonio Magno, Calum Nettleton, Bill Provost, Abishek Venkit and Wiese all getting some of those opportunities, but they couldn't bury any of the them in regulation.

"It was definitely frustrating," Nettleton said. "We started out with a lot of opportunities but then started to play into their game. Eventually in the second half we figured it out and started possessing the ball and getting more chances."

Finally, with 4:48 left in the first overtime, Wiese met Nettleton's 28-yard free kick with a header to finally put the Wildcats ahead.

"We've been doing it the whole season," Wiese said about his 10th goal of the year. "We had one with about four minutes left in the game that I completely botched. I just thought I'd be the hero then and then it came in overtime, (Nettleton) sent a great ball and I just had to put my head on and the ball went in."

As longtime club teammates, Nettleton knew what he needed to do to set up Wiese.

"We play club together and we do it all year," Nettleton said. "He goes and stays right on the back, starts off, comes back, and then he creates space for himself. Sending the ball in is easy, I just loft it to him and he can create the power himself."

While the Wildcats didn't necessarily overlook the Tomcats, they were impressed by the challenge East Aurora gave them and relieved to advance.

"We definitely weren't expect that with them being the lower seed," Nettleton said. "We also didn't play as well as we know how to. Maybe it was because we're used to playing on grass so the through balls were different. We weren't on tonight, but we'll come back nice on Saturday and do better."

That's when they'll face Romeoville, a 3-0 winner against Yorkville, in the nightcap for a regional championship.

The Wildcats haven't won one of those since 2013.