'Hard work and grit' lifted Memorial boys soccer in overtime to IHSAA regional title
WASHINGTON, Ind. – Bill Vieth had been waiting for a moment such as this from his team.
He told his players in August they had the talent to win a championship. Vieth also knows better than most it takes more. Grit, resilience and even luck. But for most of the season, Memorial was winning on talent.
That is until Saturday. In an environment when one mistake could alter their season, the Tigers offered up what this team could be moving forward in the state tournament.
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No. 2 Memorial defeated No. 13 Providence 4-3 in overtime to win the Class 2A regional. A frenetic, nerve-inducing battle that wilts the weak. The Tigers made mistakes yet overcame them. That was enough for a veteran like Vieth.
“You have to find a way to win when you don’t play your best,” he said. “That’s what we finally saw today come out of them. Somehow, on a tough field that wasn’t conducive to the way we want to play, you find a way.”
Traditional wisdom states championship teams have this moment on the postseason path. Vieth would know. He’s won over 600 games at his alma mater and owns a resume envied by every program in the state. Recent history also favors the Tigers with such a result.
Memorial has won four state championships in the past six years (2016, 2017, 2019, 2020). Most of those teams earned a victory such as this in its march to the title.
2016: penalty kick victories against Bloomington South (regional) and Columbus North (semistate)
2019: penalty kick win over Guerin Catholic (semistate) with a tying goal in the final minute of overtime
2020: overtime victory against Guerin Catholic (semistate)
The teams who contend for a spot in Indianapolis find a way like the Tigers did.
“That’s the hardest we’ve had to fight for a game,” said senior Brady Wynn, who finished with three assists. “It was just hard work and grit. All credit to Providence. They played a heck of a game. We came through in the end.”
How did Memorial (15-3-2) pull this result out? Not with many style points. A Providence own goal midway through the first half. A handball with 26 minutes left that led to a penalty kick for the Pioneers (13-5-3). Alex Fisher briefly gave the Tigers the lead in overtime with a splendid header on a free kick, but Providence answered following a defensive lapse in the box.
The game-winner with five minutes left lacked shined but counted the same. The ball bounced off the crossbar and against multiple players before finding Fisher near the end line. He sent it back to the middle to Ivan Bennett. The freshman flicked the ball in with his left foot.
“It just came right to my foot,” said Bennett. “I put my body on the line and hit it as well as I could straight into the goal. It feels amazing.”
The makeup of this team was interesting from the start. A deep senior class who already owns two blue medals paired with a talented freshmen group. It’s been the latter who stepped up the past week to put the Tigers in this position.
Cohen Havill scored twice in the 5-0 semifinal over Washington. Bennett scored twice in the championship. Both are starters but five freshmen played against Providence. That mix not only makes the Tigers tough in the future but has allowed them to win now.
“I don’t really look at them as freshmen anymore,” said Vieth. “We’ve played 20 games and they’ve played in every one of them. They have a lot of minutes under their belt. In both regional games, our freshmen really stepped up. It’s a huge plus.”
Memorial gets No. 3 Brebeuf in the Evansville semistate next weekend. It likely takes another effort such as this to secure a spot in the state championship game. But the Tigers see it as a possible springboard.
They’ve won with talent. Now, they won with grit. Survive and advance any way possible.
“It brings a lot of energy going into the next week,” said Wynn. “We know that we can make it. We can win.”
Class A at Forest Park
The host Rangers won their second regional championship in program history with a 4-1 victory against Christian Academy of Indiana.
Noah Mueller scored twice for No. 8 Forest Park (14-6-1) in the first half. Gus Hagedorn made it 3-1 with a strike in the 62nd minute followed by a goal from Carter Hinson. The Rangers advanced to the championship with a 3-2 win over No. 7 South Knox on Wednesday.
Forest Park, who last won the regional in 2013, faces Greenwood Christian in the semistate at Seymour.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Memorial snags IHSAA soccer regional title in overtime win
