Photos by Heather Belcher
Morgantown head coach Sam Snyder said he had been waiting for senior Vivek Sririam to have his big moment on the pitch.
The senior midfielder could not have picked a better time for that to happen.
Less than three minutes into the first overtime of the Mohigan’s Class AAA State Soccer Tournament semifinal clash with Cabell Midland, Sririam lit up the Beckley night.
Launching a deep blast, Sririam’s try curled in under the crossbar and just inside the far post to give Morgantown a 2-1 win in a thriller.
“I saw the keeper was inching forward off his line and I thought it might be worth a try. Nothing else had been working for us. I just gave it a hit and hoped for the best,” Sririam said.
The decisive goal now sends Morgantown to the championship game against Washington Saturday.
“Cabell Midland is a amazing and Ryan Holmes is a beast. They are well coached and well organized. I thought we had a lot of momentum going into the half. I thought we nullified them,” Snyder said. “I thought they didn’t have much offensively against our strategy. I don’t know what he told them in the second half and until I watch film, I am not even sure what they did in the second half. They ran us and my defense did such a good job holding on.”
Morgantown had taken the early lead on a goal from Connor Brumbaugh in the first half off a set piece ball from Sririam.
The second half belonged to the Knights who evened the match on goal from Holmes, assisted by Toby Wheeler.
“We had a discussion at halftime and we started moving the ball around more. It seemed like we were controlling the game in the second half,” Cabell Midland head coach Brian McNeel said. “They were playing back more and being conservative. That is how we got the one goal”
Heading into the overtime period, Snyder wanted some input from his team.
“I told them we could stay with the same game plan and go conservative, or we could go out and try to win it in the first five minutes. They said lets go get a win in the first five minutes,” Snyder said. “They came out to win the ball and create chances. When it comes to winning championships, it come down to special moments.”
The chance to make something happen came early in the extra period for Sririam.
“I was very confident in our defense and our goalie. They all had played a great game. I was confident as an attack we could move up field a little bit and try to create some chances,” Sririam said. “Cabell was great the last half and they put us under a ton of pressure. My aim was to just get the ball out of the back and create an opportunity. The opportunity came for a shot and I took it. We have been waiting four years for a chance at states and it is really amazing to have that moment right there.”
Now the Mohigans have a shot at redemption and for a state title. Its first since 2015.
“We love this field. We would love to end it in a positive way tomorrow,” Snyder said. “One of our least favorite games during the season was Washington. It was probably our worst let downs in a lot of areas. We kinda wanted a redemption game. We are excited to play them tomorrow and we are looking forward to a state championship.”
