The Valley boys’ soccer team advanced to the second round of the Class M State Tournament with a 2-0 victory over Windham in double overtime, after which the Warriors lost to Bacon Academy 4-0 to end their 2015 campaign. Mick Fearon’s club recorded a final mark of 10-5-3.

On Nov. 10 at home, 14th-seeded Valley went up against Windham in the first round of the Class M bracket. The Warriors had early chances to score, but couldn’t take advantage of those opportunities. One shot was bobbled and then sent just wide right and another passed by the face of the goal off a corner kick. Valley maintained possession almost entirely in Windham’s half of the field as the opposition pulled back defenders to limit the Warriors’ offense. Valley dominated play and outshot the Whippets 22-2, yet couldn’t break through during regulation.

“We came out strong and missed on our chances,” Coach Mick Fearon said. “They did a very good job on defense of packing the zone, even though we dominated possession. I felt like our kids didn’t make the goalie work as we missed the target wide or over the goal.”

The Warriors defense kept 19th-seeded Windham (9-7-1) off the attack and a defensive struggle ensued. With Valley unable to benefit from its chances and Windham’s inability to move the ball offensively, the game stood in a scoreless stalemate through the 80 minutes of regulation.

“We let them hang around and had them believing they had a chance. They probably thought they only needed to make one play,” Coach Fearon said. “In some ways, this was a typical tournament game with tension, but this would have been a tough loss to take because we had many more opportunities.”

Fortunately, it didn’t take long for the Warriors to make their mark in the extra period. Just 2:16 into the first 10-minute overtime, captain Garrett Hines inbounded a corner kick and fellow senior Kelvin Peterson hit a header from six feet out to score the game’s first goal and put the Warriors up 1-0. The overtime rules in the State Tournament call for two 10-minute periods and so there wasn’t much time for celebration. Valley had to regroup and fight on and they did so with another goal to salt the game away in the second OT. Sophomore Adrian Sperzel made a terrific individual play when he stole the ball, beat a defender, and knocked one by the goalie for the 2-0 lead that held up as the final margin of victory.

Up next for Valley was a road game at No. 3 seed Bacon Academy on Nov. 12 in the second round of the Class M State Tournament. The Bobcats (16-1-2) came out and put instant pressure on the Warriors, forcing an own-goal to go up 1-0 in the first 10 minutes of play. Just 1:20 later, Bacon Academy scored again to take the 2-0 lead. Valley maintained its composure and fought hard to keep it a game, but was outshot 13-0 in the first half.

In the second stanza, the Warriors got their offense moving and went on the attack. They were awarded a corner kick for their efforts and sent the ball into the air, although it sailed over the scrum. The ball crossed the far post and Bacon Academy quickly turned into an opportunity. The Bobcats cleared the ball, raced into transition, and scored to make it 3-0.

“That was a bit of a back-breaker,” Coach Fearon said. “We had an opportunity, missed, and they made a play on the other end. It was a little deflating for the boys. Bacon Academy has a very good team and we knew we could compete with them, but they are very fast up front and have excellent technical ability.”

Bacon Academy would tack on another late goal to make it 4-0 when they sent one past diving Warriors’ keeper Buddy Haydu, who finished with five saves. Coach Fearon emptied the bench to get some younger players a little state tourney experience and freshman Charlie Haughton made four saves in goal.

“Overall, I thought we had a decent year and ended up where I thought we would be.” Coach Fearon said. “We competed hard and lost to a better team and, I think as disappointed as the kids are, they know that. We knew being in Class M would be hard and we got a tough draw, but we played as hard as we could, so you always feel good about the effort.”

From The Sidelines

This was Valley Regional’s seventh-consecutive season with double-digit wins.

The Warriors’ seniors left having been a part of Shoreline Championships in 2012 and 2013, plus four State Tournament appearances.

Bacon Academy went on to reach the Class M semifinals and will face Nonnewaug. The other semi pits Lewis Mills against Tolland.