Panther boys survive scare

Posted 5/15/12

The Panthers went into intermission with a 1-0 advantage on the scoreboard. Ty Oullette scored after collecting a through ball off the toe of Cody Wichman which he then dribbled past a Rawlins defender before unleashing a low shot into the …

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Panther boys survive scare

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Rawlins forces Powell to work overtimeThe Powell Panther boys are heading back to the 3A state soccer tournament in Sheridan this week after posting a 2-1 overtime victory over Rawlins on Saturday. The win came during play-in tournament action in Riverton. “It was tight as I expected, but closer than I wanted,” said Panther coach Travis Rapp following his team’s victory. “At halftime, I told the boys they could make it easy on themselves and score a goal or let Rawlins hang around and they’d have a tough match until the whistle. My boys seem to like to do it the hard way.”

The Panthers went into intermission with a 1-0 advantage on the scoreboard. Ty Oullette scored after collecting a through ball off the toe of Cody Wichman which he then dribbled past a Rawlins defender before unleashing a low shot into the net.

Powell controlled both the tempo and the opportunities for the first 40 minutes. The Panthers owned a decisive edge in first-half shots taken, but only gathered the one goal to show for it.

“We possessed and controlled the tempo of the game, but the ability to score a goal still was lost for us,” said Rapp. “We had multiple chances to score goals, but just didn’t get them in.”

The second half saw Rawlins undergo a significant scheme change as the team morphed from a 5-4-1 alignment to a 4-3-3 look in an effort to throw more bodies forward and score a goal. The shift worked as the Outlaws were able to produce some one-on-one opportunities against Panther goalkeeper Heston Swenson.

The Powell freshman proved up to those challenges, maintaining a shutout until 10 minutes remained and Jakob Himmelstrup received a yellow card for pushing a Rawlins player inside the goal box. The call resulted in a penalty kick, which Rawlins converted to tie the contest.

At that point, Rapp made the move to get senior Cooper Wise onto the field. The Panthers’ coach had hoped to avoid using the senior, who was still on the mend from an ankle injury.

“I was hoping to get five more days of rest on his ankle,” Rapp said. “We saw a lift  once he was in and we had five or six chances at net at the end of regulation, but just couldn’t get it in.”

In overtime, the Panthers re-asserted control of the tempo and possession.

“You could really tell that we had the better athletes and conditioning,” said Rapp. “Rawlins was running on emotion while most of our players still had legs left.”

The Panthers scored five minutes into extra play as Kaden Cherian’s corner kick swerved in and was headed home by Ethan Landers.

“Ethan did a great job of getting the ball low and on target,” said Rappp. “The Rawlins keeper never had a chance on it. You could see Rawlins deflate a little bit after that ball.”

The Outlaws weren’t done, however. Rawlins had a trio of corner kicks in the final four minutes, producing some nervous moments for Rapp and company.

“The last corner, Charles Wittick, Keithen Schwahn and Heston Swenson all made saves on, and then Hunter Werbelow saved the day playing post and jumping up and saving Rawlins’ final chance by heading out a shot that would have hit side net,” said Rapp. “It was nervewracking to say the least.”

Powell narrowly missed adding to its final total as Cooper Wise and Tyler Oullette shaved the outside of the post with shots in the final minutes.

The victory lifts Powell to a 9-7 record and advances the team to the quarterfinal round of the state tournament. The Panthers will open state on Thursday in Sheridan against Jackson. The Broncs own a pair of 3-0 victories over Powell this season.

“I believe we are closer (to Jackson) in ability than others may think,” said Rapp. “I honestly believe we should be fourth behind Jackson, Buffalo and Worland, with not much separating the four of us. We have  a hard path in front of us for a state title, but like I said, these boys seem to like to do it the hard way.”

The Panthers and Broncs are scheduled for a 4 p.m. start on Thursday. That time could be pushed back depending on the pace of play for games earlier in the day.

The winner of the Jackson-Powell contest will face the winner of the Cody-Buffalo contest in one 4 p.m., Friday semifinal. The losing team in both those games will meet in an 11 a.m. Friday elimination contest.

Worland, Pinedale, Lander and Star Valley comprise the opposite half of the state bracket.

 

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