Instant classic: Seabreeze beats Matanzas on penalty kicks to win district title

The boys soccer game was decided in the second round of penalty kicks after the teams battled to a 2-2 tie.

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It was a roller coaster of emotions for both teams. After 80 minutes of play, two scoreless overtimes and two rounds of penalty kicks, the ride was finally over.

Seabreeze senior Sam Amawi, who never got on the field during game, kicked the decisive penalty kick to give the Sandcrabs a 3-2 victory over Matanzas and the District 5-5A championship trophy Thursday, Feb. 2, at Deltona High School.

The Sandcrabs (12-3-3) will host River Ridge in a Region 2-5A quarterfinal at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 8.

Matanzas (8-5-2), receives a wild-card bid into the playoffs as the seventh-ranked team in the region and will visit Winter Garden Horizon at 7 p.m. Feb. 8.

Amawi was the unexpected hero in a game that had no shortage of heroics.

Seabreeze's players jumped up and down in celebration after jumping out to a 2-0 lead with 23:36 left in regulation. But five minutes later, Sandcrabs star midfielder Michael Hogan received his second yellow card, forcing Seabreeze to play with 10 players — one man down — the rest of the way.

Matanzas scored on a penalty kick a minute later and then tied the score 2-2 with 3:36 left. The score remained tied through two overtimes, and the district championship would come down to penalty kicks.

Each team made two of their five penalty kicks to send the game to a second, single-elimination, round.

“There were some guys who stepped up in the second round who didn’t even get on the field,” Seabreeze coach Jon Kinsler said. “So, I was a little concerned.”

In the first round of PKs, Seabreeze’s Anthony Palermo and Andrew McNerney and Matanzas’ Sebastian Bernardi and goalkeeper Ben Kopach converted their kicks. Kopach looked like a field player as he buried the final PK of the round to keep the Pirates’ hopes of winning alive.


Ben’s been wanting all year to take a PK. I kept saying nah. But this time, I said, ‘I’ll give him a chance. If anybody’s going to make it, it’s going to be him.’ I know now, any PKs, I’m going to let Ben take them.” — BETO AGUILAR, Matanzas coach

In the second round, Seabreeze’s Christian Koch and Matanzas’ Landon Grover converted their kicks. After each keeper stopped a shot, Amawi drilled his kick past Kopach, and the Pirates missed their kick to give Seabreeze the victory.

“Sam said, ‘Kinsler, I can do it.’ And I said, OK. And he went out there cool as a cucumber and buried it,” Kinsler said. “I was very excited for him. It’s a huge moment for him, because he’s a senior and what a way to help your team win their district title.”

In a very physical first half, Seabreeze broke a scoreless tie with Charlie Triplett’s goal with 1:38 left before halftime. Triplett, who started the game on the bench, had scored a hat trick for the Sandcrabs in their 4-1 win over Deltona in the district semifinals on Jan. 31.

“We put a ball in the box, and one of our guys just jumped up and contested it, which threw off the defender, and it landed right at Charlie’s feet,” Kinsler said. “He was in the right place at the right time and put it in the back of the net for us.”

After Matanzas was called for a handball in the box, Hector Vasquez made it 2-0 with a penalty kick at 23:36.

“Hector’s been stone-cold for us this year,” Kinsler said.

That score spurred a celebration by the entire Sandcrabs team. But the joy didn’t last long, as Hogan received a blue card (two yellows) with 18:23 left.

“Michael, we have to keep a muzzle on him sometimes,” Kinsler said. “But I don’t think he used any profanity, nothing aggressive. I think the referee just had enough. I guess he said one too many things.”

Our boys fought the entire match. And I really applaud them for not giving up. We stayed strong and stayed resilient and had to take it all the way to overtime and penalty kicks, but we persevered.” — JON KINSLER

Landon Grover scored on a penalty kick for Matanzas to make it 2-1 with 17:29 left.

“I got a hand on it, but it wasn’t enough,” Seabreeze goalkeeper AJ Cole said. “It went in.”  

The Pirates tied it 2-2 on Davi Nunes Dos Santos’ goal off a corner kick with 3:36 remaining.

“At the end of the day, we had to play down a man (after Hogan’s blue card),” Kinsler said. “Our boys fought the entire match. And I really applaud them for not giving up. We stayed strong and stayed resilient and had to take it all the way to overtime and penalty kicks, but we persevered.”

The game was physical throughout, and Seabreeze received several yellow cards.

“I kept having to switch and adjust, but the boys bought into what I was doing,” Kinsler said.

The Pirates were aiming to win their third straight district championship, but they will settle for the playoff bid.

“We weren’t able to get the three-peat, but we’ll still be able to go to the playoffs,” Aguilar said. “It was a crazy game. For us to come back and even be able to make that effort was big.”

 

author

Brent Woronoff

Brent Woronoff is the associate editor of the Palm Coast and Ormond Beach Observers. He has been in the business more than 41 years, nearly 30 with the Daytona Beach News-Journal. He is a former assistant sports editor at the News-Journal and former sports editor at the St. Augustine Record.

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