St. Ignatius vs. Lewis Center Olentangy boys soccer: Wildcats survive overtime to reach Division I state final

ASHLAND, Ohio — When Wednesday night's Division I boys state soccer semifinal went into overtime, the St. Ignatius Wildcats had one thing on their mind.

"We did not want to go into penalty kicks, so we were just pushing and pushing and pushing, driving forward," Marty McLaughlin said. "At practice we always go hard till the end and it reflects in overtime of the game. We got to go as hard as we can because PK's you never know what's going to happen so take care of it in regular time."

The score was tied 1-1 and the Wildcats had plenty of chances to end it, but the Olentangy defense stood firm. After one of those St. Ignatius chances the Braves' counterattack nearly snapped the Wildcats' state title streak, but the shot went just wide.

The Wildcats immediately countered. With 2:56 left in overtime Sammy Trivisonno beat Olentangy goalkeeper Alex Kerestan to let St. Ignatius play for its sixth straight state championship.

"You've got to be really good to get to this stage. And there were moments in the game where I thought we looked good, and there were moments in the game where I thought they looked good," St. Ignatius head coach Mike McLaughlin said. "I thought in the overtime, towards the end of the game and overtime, we had some more chances and the momentum. These are just kids, and it's, it's hard to deal with the pressure and everything that's involved with it. And I'm really proud of these guys that they found a way. At this stage, it's about finding a way."

Wednesday's matchup was the first time Olentangy (15-3-2) has had a boys soccer team advance to the state semifinals.

The Braves made it to this point with wins over crosstown rival Olentangy Orange and Dublin Jerome, one of just two in-state teams to beat the Wildcats since 2018.

St. Ignatius (13-4-2) is in the midst of a run of dominance on the soccer pitch that Ohio has never seen. The Wildcats have won 13 state soccer titles since claiming their first in 2004. That includes each of the last five.

"I feel like part of it is just the culture at our school," Marty McLaughlin said. "We want to win and we do what it takes to win. I feel like it's proven. We've been here six years in a row."

The Wildcats will battle for a sixth consecutive title, and 14th overall, at 7 p.m. Sunday against Columbus St. Charles at Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus.

The two sides traded possession and scoring opportunities early when Olentangy had a corner kick about 23 minutes into the first half.

The Braves found the back of the net on the corner, but the goal was waived off due to a foul. About 10 minutes later, Trivisonno had a shot from the right side of the goal that went just high.

The Wildcats quickly regained possession and Marty McLaughlin fired a shot from almost 30 yards out that flew right past the keeper into the left side of the goal to put St. Ignatius up 1-0.

"It was perfect honestly," Marty McLaughlin said. "The ball came across. It's what a midfielder dreams for. Tees up perfectly. Top of the box. And then you just hit it."

The score stayed 1-0 until there were 30 minutes to go and Olentangy got a free kick.

Sawyer Wilbanks floated the ball into a dangerous spot and Wildcats goalkeeper Josh Speelman went to defend it. He didn't get there in time and Lucas Brinkman tied the game with a header.

A few minutes later Wilbanks had a great look at goal and nearly put the Braves up 2-1, but Speelman made a big time save.

After the Braves' goal, the Wildcats pressed for the rest of the second half trying to break the tie.

Still. they had a hard time even getting a shot off. Whether it was Kerestan or anyone else, the Olentangy defense made plays time and time again on several Wildcat set pieces.

"They could play. They weren't leaving themselves exposed, and they just, they were really hard to get behind," Mike McLaughlin said. "They did good stuff in the middle, too. That was a complete team. They had a good back line, they had a good middle, they had a good front ... We challenge the guys when they get the ball, just to be patient and look for the next pass. You know, they just want to hit the home run every time."

The clock hit triple zero with the score still tied, so the game headed to overtime.

Ignatius played in the Braves' half of the field at the end of the second half and in overtime. But a Braves clear turned into a scoring opportunity, and Wilbanks nearly put the game away with just under four minutes left.

The tables turned right away as the Wildcats countered. With 2:56 left Trivisonno put one past Kerestan to send the Wildcats back to the state championship.

"After all the hard work, the shots created, eventually one had to go in and that was the one," Trivisonno said. "Everybody expects so much from us and we've got to come out and capitalize every year. It's just a tradition."