MANCHESTER — Top seeded North Laurel had a scare for a while against crosstown rival South Laurel before tying the game at two apiece during the 59th minute while finishing the game with three unanswered goals to win, 4-2.
The defending 13th Region champions advance to Thursday’s 49th District Boys’ Tournament championship game and will play the winner of Corbin and Oneida Baptist at 6:30 p.m.
“Tonight was a tough fought game. We made a couple of mistakes defensively in the first half and fell behind 1-0 early,” North Laurel coach David Broyles said. “We were able to tie the game up, but fell behind 2-1 at the half. This team showed their grit in the second half and got back to playing soccer the way that has been successful for us throughout the season and found the proper passes to score.
“We showed a lot of heart tonight and earned their way to the finals,” he added. “Credit to South for how they played tonight, but proud of my team for how they responded to adversity.”
North Laurel fell behind 1-0 nine minutes into the match after a goal by the Cardinals’ Henry Flaegel.
The Jaguars (9-3-2) tied the match at one apiece after a head by Reilly Stuber found the back of the net during the 14th minute.
Liam Zik scored on a breakaway during the 22nd minute to give South Laurel a 2-1 lead.
The Cardinals (9-9-1) held the slim advantage until the 59th minute when Malik Turner scored on a breakaway to make the score two-all.
North Laurel regained momentum, and began to pull away as Stuber’s goal during the 66th minute gave his team a 3-2 lead.
Another goal by Turner three minutes later secured the win for the Jaguars.
