Dacus Scores In First Half, But Panthers Rally In Second To Defeat Edwardsville 2-1 In Southwestern Conference Soccer Match

EDWARDSVILLE - Tyler Dacus scored a brilliant goal in the first half, but O'Fallon rallied in the second half to score twice and take a 2-1 decision over Edwardsville in a Southwestern Conference boys soccer match Tuesday night at Tiger Stadium.

It was the first time the Panthers had come back to Edwardsville since their dramatic win at the death in last year's Class 3A regional final 1-0 over the Tigers after extra time. In this match, the Tigers scored a great goal to get things started off on the right foot.

"We constructed a great goal in the first half," said Edwardsville head coach Mark Heiderscheid. "We were able to move the ball and break the lines in the middle third. Owen lLogan finally bounces a ball after we had connected several times and he plays Tyler Dacus in and Ty finishes the goal."

Edwardsville seemingly had the match in control when the Panthers equalized late in the first half, getting the winner late in the match.

"While we seemingly had the game, O'Fallon kicks a ball forward," Heiderscheid said, "and the ball bounces out and the next player kicks it in from 30 yards out and he scored with just a couple of minutes left in the half. In the second half, we started to possess the ball again. We almost got through and kept pushing for the winner. "But we got caught on the counterattack, missed a tackle and O'Fallon scored the winner late in the second half." Although the Tigers dropped the three points, the focus now is on the upcoming IHSA Class 3A playoffs and make as much progress as possible before the postseason begins later this month.

"All that said, we are looking to the playoffs at this point," Heiderscheid said, "and we are going to look at the last games that we have played, like the win at (Belleville) East and try to make progress towards building our team to the playoffs."

The Panthers go to 8-7-2, while the Tigers are now 11-5-2 and meet Belleville West on Thursday night in the team's annual Senior Night match, starting at 6:30 p.m., then conclude the regular season at CBC Saturday afternoon in a 12 noon kickoff. Heiderscheid is looking ahead to Senior Night and will have very fond memories of the Class of 2023.

"As we look to Senior Night on Thursday, I cannot say enough about our seniors," Heiderscheid said. "These seniors are of the highest character. I truly look forward to Senior Night, because to honor them is something that makes coaching so special."

More like this: