TOPSHAM — Mudasir Hassan said it hurt when his Edward Little teammates picked him up and hoisted him on their shoulders after he scored the game-winning goal in double overtime, but was all smiles about the 1-0 win over Mt. Ararat in a Class A North boys soccer quarterfinal Wednesday.
After a pass from Khalid Mohamed on the right side, the wide-open Hassan slotted the top-shelf shot into the net 57 seconds into the second overtime period.
“Surreal. It’s just shock,” Edward Little head coach Max Thompson said. “I mean, I feel for Jack (Rioux) and his team. They work so hard, they play so well. I don’t know, it was kind of too bad somebody had to lose. They had a PK, we had a wide-open goal. I mean, the chances were there for both teams.
“At some point you figured one had to go in. But it’s just a great feeling. I wish every team got a chance to experience it. We’ve been pretty fortunate.”
The fifth-seeded Red Eddies (9-5-1) had three opportunities to end the game during the first 15-minute overtime period, but two were called offsides, and one shot just missed the net. Fourth-seeded Mt. Ararat (8-6-1), meanwhile, had a goal nullified by an offsides call in the first OT.
Earlier in the game, the Eagles were awarded a penalty kick but could not convert as the ball hit the left post in the 63rd minute.
“We could be in that situation 100 other times, and I’d still have (senior defender) Ethan (Berry) on the ball,” Mt. Ararat head coach Jack Rioux said.
Rioux said he was proud of his team’s effort in the 96-minute game, and that his players did everything that was asked of them.
“It was just one play. They made one more than us, and that’s kind of what did it,” Rioux said.
Mt. Ararat outshot Edward Little 7-4 and had a 5-1 corner advantage. Brady Yazwinski saved three shots for the Eagles, while Max Kimble made seven saves for the Red Eddies.
Despite early injuries and struggles to establish a quality possession, Edward Little remained calm and utilized its bench. By the time regulation ended, the visitors said they felt ready to capitalize.
“We weren’t nervous at all,” Hassan said. “We knew we were going to win the game.”
Edward Little advances to the Class A North semifinals where they will take on top-seeded Camden Hills (12-1-1) in Rockport on Friday. The Red Eddies and Windjammers met twice in the regular season, resulting in a scoreless double-overtime draw and a 3-2 overtime win for Camden Hills.
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