Heartbreak Haunts HCA

SHADY HILLS - Everything appeared set up for Hernando Christian Academy to make the first regional appearance in program history.
No longer buried in one of the toughest districts in the state, the Lions entered their Class 2A, District 9 Tournament semifinal at Bishop McLaughlin Tuesday night as the second seed.
Across the pitch stood third-seeded Academy at the Lakes, a team HCA had defeated three times in the regular season.
Instead it was the Wildcats who celebrated their first state playoff berth, while the Lions had to deal with a heartbreaking loss in penalty kicks, 2-1.
"It's a tough one," HCA Head Coach Matt Carrao said. "We played them four times this year and three times we beat them pretty well. I think that they played very well. I give them a ton of credit. They played their hearts and I think they had a good game plan and executed.
"I just felt that we were flat. We're also missing a starter on defense. But we missed a lot of chances. We had to have out-shot them significantly but nothing was falling. But all credit to them, they played hard."

Unexpected result

At first, HCA (9-5-5) seemed ready to roll into the district final, notching an easy goal early in the first half.
Less than 10 minutes in, Academy at the Lakes (4-13-1) keeper Jesse Alpert-stern found himself way out of position, as Sean Byrne dribbled past him and kicked the ball softly into the empty net.
The Lions had other opportunities, yet never cashed in and carried that 1-0 edge into halftime.
Two minutes into the second half, the Wildcats tied it when Jason Pitcarin headed in a loose ball off a free kick by brother Daniel Pitcarin.
In the 56th minute, Kevin Herbert nearly put HCA back on top when his kick hit off the left post. Brian Keyes just missed on a rebound attempt.
Jeffrey Basciano had a free kick for the Lions with 11 minutes remaining; however the ball went straight to Alpert-stern.
HCA keeper Chip Harrell made a fantastic diving save with four minutes left, thwarting a header by Jason Pitcarin.
Neither club managed a significant offensive attempt in two 10-minute overtime periods, forcing penalty kicks.
Basciano, Byrne, Kyle Marra and Keyes all converted PK attempts. Daniel Pitcarin, Nikil Ferris, James Mortenson, Trace Waters matched that for the Wildcats.
That necessitated a second round of sudden death PKs. Max Chervits and Herbert exchanged goals, then Jason Pitcarin scored to the left of Harrell.
Freshman Cole Bergstrom came on next, missing wide right to end the match. Carrao immediately ran out to console his player as the Wildcats celebrated the triumph.
"Bottom line, I have a freshman and an eighth grader (Cody Gillis) out there taking penalty kicks and that's a lot to ask of young players," Carrao said. "Certainly though, we win or lose in the 80 minutes that we didn't play our best.
"So it's a team loss. I appreciate them stepping up and taking the risk and going up there and doing their best. Certainly not their fault, certainly this loss is a team loss, not a loss on them. Great young players."
Academy at the Lakes advanced to regionals in its first season of district play.
"We were 0-3 to these guys but the scores were 3-0, 5-2. They weren't blowouts. They were close games," Wildcats Head Coach Don Bellefeuille said. "To be honest, we haven't had our whole team together until the end of the year with injuries."
Carrao still felt his squad had a solid campaign. In years past this district included defending state champion Tampa Prep, now in 2A-10. This year the Lions had a more realistic shot at post-season success.
"Considering it's a building year and the youth we have, we'll graduate two seniors," Carrao said. "I think we definitely overachieved. Again, I'm very, very proud of them. It was a tough way to go but Academy at the Lakes definitely earned it."
 
ACADEMY AT THE LAKES 2, HERNANDO CHRISTIAN 1 (ATL wins in PKs, 6-5)
ATL 0 1 0 0 0 1 - 2
HCA 1 0 0 0 0 0 - 1
Goals - J. Pitcarin (ATL); Byrne (HCA).
Assists - Freeman D. Pitcarin (ATL).
Shots - ATL 6; HCA 7.
Saves - ATL: Alpert-stern 4; HCA: Harrell 5.
Blue cards - none.
Yellow cards - Chervits (ATL), Herbert (HCA).
Red cards - none.
Records - Academy at the Lakes (4-13-1), Hernando Christian (9-5-5).