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BOYS SOCCER

Section II?

Class C Semifinals

Waterford 3, Fort Plain 1

Berlin 2, Greenwich 0

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JOHNSTOWN - A Waterford-Halfmoon surge late in the opening half proved to be the difference in Tuesday's Section II Class C semifinal.

The Fordians put a pair of goals in the back of the net to take a 3-0 halftime advantage and held off a strong second-half Fort Plain attack for a 3-1 win to advance to Saturday's championship match in Colonie against Greenwich.

"We fell asleep for about eight minutes there in the first half and lost some marks, giving them some time to hit some good shots," Fort Plain coach Casey Russom said. "They struck some good balls, that first one was unsavable and we gave the kid too much time on the second one."

The top-seeded Fordians (15-2-0) displayed an organized fast attack early in the first half that the Fort Plain defense held in check.

Fre Breen found Zac Lennon open in the penalty area and Lennon fired a 10-yard shot on goal that Fort Plain defender Dylan Petchel cleared off the line after goalkeeper Ashton Parker made the initial stop.

Waterford broke the score tie with 8:29 left in the opening half.

David Lee served a pass to Lennon who one-touched a left-footed blast that found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.

Lee found success again after initially having his run on goal stopped by a Hilltopper defender, but he collected the loose ball and fired a 30-yard shot on net just out of the Parker's diving attempt with 3:23 left to the break.

The Fordians closed out the half with their third goal as Breen used his speed to beat the Fort Plain defense to the right corner before drawing the ball back and sending a centering pass onto the foot of Dylan Carlton to give Waterford a 3-0 halftime advantage.

The Hilltoppers showed they were not ready to concede when they took the field for the second half.

Jeremy Wilson made a strong run early in the second half before dishing a pass off to Tom Jackson who put a shot on net that Waterford goalkeeper Ryan Hardy knocked away.

Tyler Barhydt put the Hilltopers on the board with 31:01 left in regulation when he received a pass out of the midfield and turned toward goal. He was immediately met by a trio of Fordian defenders, but kept the ball moving forward before slotting the ball into the left-side netting to cut the lead to 3-1.

Fort Plain continued to keep the pressure on the Waterford defense, keeping the play in the Fordians end of the field for the next 30 minutes.

With 14:26 remaining, Barhydt pushed an indirect kick through the Fordians' back line that Jackson put on net only to have Hardy dive to knock the point-blank shot away.

Hardy's save appeared to help the Waterford attack regain its focus as it moved the ball through the midfield and control the clock over the final minutes to secure the victory.

"The second half, I was proud of the way they came out and didn't quit and put a lot of pressure on them," Russom said. "We had a couple of chances where if the ball bounces a different way, we get the second goal and it is a different game."

Each team put eight shots on goal, with Fort Plain holding a 4-2 edge in corner kicks.

"I am very proud of this team," Russom said. "Unfortunately, it hurts right now, but, as a whole, if you look back the season this team really overachieved. We had a lot of great senior leadership and a bunch of juniors and a sophomore. They will be tough to follow."

The Hilltoppers close out their season with an 11-7-0 record.