BELLEVILLE - Sugar River senior midfielder Travis Loeffelholz's timing couldn't have been better.
After a header by Sugar River sophomore midfielder Nehemiah Noriega and a header by a Big Foot-Williams Bay player, Loeffelholz cashed in a game-winning goal into the back of the net to give the Raiders a thrilling 3-2 win over the Chiefs in double overtime Thursday, Oct. 17, sealing a WIAA Division 3 regional championship.
"I have been hoping for an opportunity like this since my freshman year and my first varsity game," Loeffelholz said. "It's now all coming together."
Sugar River (15-5-2), the No. 1 seed, will host No. 3 seed McFarland in a sectional semifinal Thursday, Oct. 24 after the Spartans knocked off No. 2 seed Delavan-Darien 2-0. The Raiders tied McFarland at 2 in a game earlier this season. The Raiders are two more wins from advancing to state.
"It's absolutely sensational," Sugar River coach Dick Sanders said. "I seeded them (Big Foot-Williams Bay) No. 3 in the meeting. It's probably the best skilled team we will face."
Early on, it looked like the Raiders would win a defensive battle. Sugar River senior Dylan Paris scored a goal on an assist by sophomore midfielder Dylan Hustad at 7 minutes, 56 seconds to give the Raiders a 1-0 lead. The Raiders out-shot the Chiefs 6-3 in the first half and led just 1-0.
"I think it was very important we scored early," Sanders said. "It set the tone. Our first two goals weren't our usual scorers. A team will know who your top scorers are. We needed our other players to be dangerous. It was our midfielders who really stepped up."
The Chiefs scored two goals in the first seven minutes of the second half. Big Foot-Williams Bay senior Brian Wolski scored off an indirect kick after Sugar River goalkeeper Alex Uebelacker dropped the first shot. Wolski was there to punch in a goal past Uebelacker after the ball uncharacteristically popped away at 42:44. Big Foot-Williams Bay junior Christian Munoz then shot the ball to the near post past a diving Uebelacker to give the Chiefs a 2-1 lead at 47:06. Uebelacker finished with four saves.
"We weren't very concerned when we were down," Sanders said. "We don't have much doubt. It's just a matter of time when (scoring a goal) will happen. I told them we had to watch out for this team. We spend a lot of time working on the mental game. That is critical."
It didn't take the Raiders long to answer. Hustad scored a game-tying goal moments later to tie the game at 2. It stayed that way until the 92nd minute when Loeffelholz scored the game-winning goal. The Raiders charged the field and celebrated winning the regional championship plaque.
"It feels great," Loeffelholz said. "It's the first time Belleville has won a regional in seven years. It feels amazing, especially being a senior."
After giving up two early goals in the second half, Sanders changed personnel and moved sophomore defender Miguel Santos Braceros from the back to the outside and moved some players with more height back.
"Offensively, they (Big Foot-Williams Bay) always attacked on the outside," Sanders said. "We wanted to counter their outside attack because they had a lot of speed."
Sugar River now gears up for a sectional semifinal showdown with McFarland. After the game, Sanders said he wanted to play McFarland because it meant another home game for the Raiders.
"I want to get McFarland off the turf," Sanders said referring to the Reddan Soccer Park where the Raiders would have had to play if Delavan-Darien had won. "They are a very good team and have a lot of club soccer players."
After a header by Sugar River sophomore midfielder Nehemiah Noriega and a header by a Big Foot-Williams Bay player, Loeffelholz cashed in a game-winning goal into the back of the net to give the Raiders a thrilling 3-2 win over the Chiefs in double overtime Thursday, Oct. 17, sealing a WIAA Division 3 regional championship.
"I have been hoping for an opportunity like this since my freshman year and my first varsity game," Loeffelholz said. "It's now all coming together."
Sugar River (15-5-2), the No. 1 seed, will host No. 3 seed McFarland in a sectional semifinal Thursday, Oct. 24 after the Spartans knocked off No. 2 seed Delavan-Darien 2-0. The Raiders tied McFarland at 2 in a game earlier this season. The Raiders are two more wins from advancing to state.
"It's absolutely sensational," Sugar River coach Dick Sanders said. "I seeded them (Big Foot-Williams Bay) No. 3 in the meeting. It's probably the best skilled team we will face."
Early on, it looked like the Raiders would win a defensive battle. Sugar River senior Dylan Paris scored a goal on an assist by sophomore midfielder Dylan Hustad at 7 minutes, 56 seconds to give the Raiders a 1-0 lead. The Raiders out-shot the Chiefs 6-3 in the first half and led just 1-0.
"I think it was very important we scored early," Sanders said. "It set the tone. Our first two goals weren't our usual scorers. A team will know who your top scorers are. We needed our other players to be dangerous. It was our midfielders who really stepped up."
The Chiefs scored two goals in the first seven minutes of the second half. Big Foot-Williams Bay senior Brian Wolski scored off an indirect kick after Sugar River goalkeeper Alex Uebelacker dropped the first shot. Wolski was there to punch in a goal past Uebelacker after the ball uncharacteristically popped away at 42:44. Big Foot-Williams Bay junior Christian Munoz then shot the ball to the near post past a diving Uebelacker to give the Chiefs a 2-1 lead at 47:06. Uebelacker finished with four saves.
"We weren't very concerned when we were down," Sanders said. "We don't have much doubt. It's just a matter of time when (scoring a goal) will happen. I told them we had to watch out for this team. We spend a lot of time working on the mental game. That is critical."
It didn't take the Raiders long to answer. Hustad scored a game-tying goal moments later to tie the game at 2. It stayed that way until the 92nd minute when Loeffelholz scored the game-winning goal. The Raiders charged the field and celebrated winning the regional championship plaque.
"It feels great," Loeffelholz said. "It's the first time Belleville has won a regional in seven years. It feels amazing, especially being a senior."
After giving up two early goals in the second half, Sanders changed personnel and moved sophomore defender Miguel Santos Braceros from the back to the outside and moved some players with more height back.
"Offensively, they (Big Foot-Williams Bay) always attacked on the outside," Sanders said. "We wanted to counter their outside attack because they had a lot of speed."
Sugar River now gears up for a sectional semifinal showdown with McFarland. After the game, Sanders said he wanted to play McFarland because it meant another home game for the Raiders.
"I want to get McFarland off the turf," Sanders said referring to the Reddan Soccer Park where the Raiders would have had to play if Delavan-Darien had won. "They are a very good team and have a lot of club soccer players."
