Sentinel photo by JIMMY MAY
Midd-West’s Evan Eppley, right, comes down on Fleetwood’s Aiden Negron, center, after deflecting a corner kick as Fleetwood goalkeeper Sam Schappell watches during the first half of Tuesday night’s PIAA Class 2A semifinal game in Harrisburg.

HARRISBURG — The incredible run of the Midd-West boys soccer team came to an end in a 6-2 loss to Fleetwood Tuesday in a PIAA Class 2A tournament semifinal at Central Dauphin’s Landis Field.

The Tigers (19-7-2) used their speed and the goal-scoring prowess of forward Haydyn Zagorski, who had a hat trick and two assists, to advance to the state finals for the first time since 2000.

The Mustangs failed in their second attempt to make the state finals for the first time (the other was in 2009) to end the season at 21-3.

“In the end, these guys are going to be pleased where they came from, how far they exceeded expectations and set the standard for the next few years,” Midd-West coach Chris Sauer said. “We have some talented kids coming up from our junior high program and talented kids returning, so hopefully we can get back to this spot again and again in the years to come. They were one game away from a state title game and that’s huge for our program. It’s great for the kids going forward and the experience they picked up is invaluable.”

Fleetwood scored 12:38 in on its first shot of the game when Zagorski took the cross from Lucas Strange and buried it into the right side of the net for his first goal.

The Mustangs fought back and midway through the first fired off four shots on Tiger keeper Sam Schappell in near rapid-fire succession to no avail. Included in those was a shot by Connor Erdley that went off the right post.

“They scored the first goal then we came back for a good 10 minutes and had them on their heels,” Sauer said. “We hit the post. Had another shot right at the keeper. We had a nice shot from the right side and had plenty of chances to put it at 1-1. You put it at 1-1 and I’m sure it’s going to have a different feel and be a different game going into halftime as opposed to being down 2-0.”

Fleetwood fought off the offensive barrage to open up a 2-0 halftime advantage when Zagorski rang up goal No. 2 when Strange, who had a goal and two assists, fed Zagorski a perfect pass on the breakaway.

Goals from Tony Hunter and Andrew Slusser in the opening 20 minutes of the second half stretched the Tigers lead to 4-0.

Midd-West showcased its never-say-die attitude when Evan Eppley scored twice 59 seconds apart to trim the deficit to 4-2 and give the Mustang faithful hope with 23 minutes left in regulation.

“We didn’t have an ounce of giving up in us, which kind of made it interesting for a while. We were throwing guys forward, but we had trouble handling their offensive pressure,” Sauer said. “We were aware of their speed. The only difference from them and Lancaster Mennonite was the third attacker. They had the same style of play. We didn’t have the same intensity in our 1-v-1 defending. We didn’t defend well all over the field and that created problems for us.”

Eppley closed out his senior season with 28 goals and 13 assists.

“We were trying to get him (Eppley) to go at their right-side left back and when he finally decided to do that, he gave them fits with two great finishes,” Sauer said. “He had an opportunity to put it at 4-3 to make it even more interesting, so you look at this and I don’t think they are four goals better than us. You need to experience these things in life sometimes. You have to learn how to handle disappointment and bounce back and I believe these kids will.”

The Tigers ended any hope of a comeback after Strange and Zagorski scored goals 24 seconds apart late in the second half to ice the game.

“It is what it is but I’m proud of our guys for continuing to fight and playing the game the right way. You see a lot of teams get down like this and they resort to fouling and complaining,” Sauer said. “Our guys were fantastic in that respect. We take pride in our program and how we act on and off the field and I’m proud of the way they conducted themselves throughout the game.”

Zagorski now has seven goals and four assists in the PIAA playoffs.

“Not many people outside of Berks County know about Ziggy but he is a special player and a big-time goal scorer,” Fleetwood coach Keith Schlegel said. “Midd-West is a solid team. They kept fighting and never gave up. I’m very happy and proud of the guys. We are playing for a state championship. It doesn’t get any better than that.”

“Fleetwood is a great team. You don’t get to this point in the season without being a good team. It’s disappointing to give up six goals when we gave up only 11 all season long,” Sauer said. “This is something we can learn from, something that will motivate us to get better and get right back here again next season.”

Fleetwood 6, Midd-West 2

First half

F–Haydyn Zagorski (Lucas Strange), 12:38; F–Zagorski (Strange), 24:56.

Second half

F–Anthony Hunter (Zagorski), 13:38; F–Andrew Slusser, 18:51; MW–Evan Eppley (Canyon Zeigler), 22:48; MW–Eppley, 23:46; F–Strange (Zagorski), 36:20; F–Zagorski (Owen Breisch), 36:44.

Shots: F 16-10. Corners: F 4-3. Saves: F-5 (Sam Schappell); MW-7 (Chase Roush).