IAC BOYS SOCCER: SVEC DROPS 1-0 THRILLER TO LANSING IN CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (22 PHOTOS) (2024-10-19)

By TIM TAYLOR
Tioga County Sports Report
DRYDEN — Lansing would repeat as the IAC Large School boys soccer champion in a 1-0 thriller over Spencer-Van Etten/Candor at Tompkins-Cortland Community College Saturday evening, but it was a much more impressive showing for the Eagles than when the two teams met a month ago.

In that Sept. 19 clash, the Bobcats took control early en route to a 3-0 win. This time, SVEC was competitive for the entire 80 minutes.

“Super proud of the boys tonight,” said SVEC coach Jason Banks. “It was a much different game than when we went and played thema month ago. They really dominated us the first time, but tonight I think it was a pretty even match.

Gavin Marsit would put a shot past SVEC goalkeeper Sirron Irvin in the ninth minute of the second half for the lone score of the contest.

The goal came after Xavier Smith raced down the right sideline and took a long shot past the front of the goal. Irvin dove at the ball, but before he could return to his feet Marsit had taken the shot.

Irvin was a wall otherwise, stopping seven shots on the night.

Lansing would outshoot the Eagles, 12-7, taking the majority of its shots in the game’s final 20 minutes. The Bobcats’ best opportunity to double its lead came with just over 16 minutes remaining with a shot that careened off the crossbar.

The Bobcats controlled the early tempo, but it didn’t take long for SVEC to even the playing field, pressuring the Lansing defense in the fourth and fifth minutes of action.

Unfortunately for the Eagles, Tyler Greeno went out with an injury and was unable to return.

“Tyler is not only a good player, but a leader on the field, so he was tough to miss, which is kind of one of those things,” coach Banks said.

Both teams looked to get on the scoreboard on several occasions midway through the first half, but the opposing defenses would rise to the occasion.

SVEC would attempt a pair of corner kicks in the 35th minute of the half, but was unable to find the back of the net.

The second half continued to offer onlookers an evenly-matched battle and it wasn’t until after Lansing scored that the Bobcats would start to gain an advantage in possession.

Lansing would finish with a 12-8 advantage in shots and Bobcat keeper Tobijas Rigdon had two saves.

“They finished their one chance and we didn’t finish ours,” coach Banks said. “It happens in this game.”

It was the eighth shutout of the season for Lansing (12-3-1), which came in ranked 14th among the state’s Class B teams. The Bobcats’ losses have come against teams outside Section IV.

SVEC (10-4) will visit fourth-seeded Susquehanna Valley (8-5-1) for a Class B quarterfinal next Saturday at 3 p.m. Lansing will open postseason play seeded second

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PHOTOS BY TIM TAYLOR.

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