Experience didn't save Evans

Jeff Dumond walked up the bleachers and toward the exit, stopping only to grab a bite of food from the leftovers at the concession stand.

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He saw the fans who gathered around him as he walked, but he barely acknowledged them.

"You played a great game, Jeff," someone told the Evans goalkeeper.

"Yeah, good job, Jeff," someone else said.

It was empty praise meant to lift his spirits, and Dumond knew it. He walked away with a lukewarm quesadilla in one hand and reflected on two gaffes that led to a penalty-kick shootout and a 3-2 Lakeside win.

The Knights were supposed to have locked up the No. 2 seed in their subregion. Instead, the second spot will come down to goals against in subregion play, which finishes this week.

There never should have been overtime Thursday.

Evans led 2-0 more than 20 minutes into the second half. Dumond had cleaned up every ball to that point.

Then, a pass from midfield rolled quickly toward Dumond in goal, and Panthers forward Steven Campbell was bearing down fast.

Dumond opted to kick the ball out rather than fall on it. The boot ricocheted off Campbell's chest and into the goal at 17:55.

"It was a split-second decision," Dumond said. "And it was obviously the wrong one."

Still, the Knights led. The miscue from one of the area's best keepers was soon forgotten. And the Panthers were becoming desperate.

A Lakeside corner kick was headed out of harm's way. A Panthers' throw-in at 1:51 targeted the traffic around the Knights' box, but Dumond wrapped up the loose ball.

Then, the improbable.

With less than a minute to play, Lakeside's Justin Pitock let it rip, and his shot from 30 yards out floated high and soft for Dumond.

A can of corn, if it were baseball. An easy play, just squeeze it.

The shot landed in Dumond's hands. He bobbled it for a second, and it fell to the ground just inside the left post.

The game was tied.

"I was backpedaling and ...," Dumond said, and his voice trailed off.

It's hard to find words when you've been kicked in the gut.

Dumond wouldn't find redemption during the shootout. Evans coach Brian Killips picked Quinten Wilson as his keeper.

Wilson played goalkeeper on his club team. He had stopped the Panthers the season before during a similar situation. He was a senior, Dumond a sophomore. Killips was going with experience.

All the coach asked for was one stop, and Wilson came through by stopping Lakeside's first kick.

Experience lost out to the best performance Lakeside coach Dave Morgan has ever seen.

Panthers keeper Sean Combs dived to save the Knights' first attempt. He made diving saves on the second and third.

Combs' fourth such save brought his teammates from their seated positions at midfield to mob the hero.

"Combs, you are awesome."

"I love you."

"Put that in your highlight reel. You're going to Clemson."

While the Panthers praised their victorious goalkeeper, Dumond walked up the metal bleachers toward the concession stand.