Thomasville stunned the Irish when they scored with nine seconds left in regulation and ended the Aquinas season with a 4-3 victory in the Class A/AA semifinals.

It was a colossal battle between the Fighting Irish and the visiting Thomasville Bulldogs Tuesday night. The home team got off to a quick start and nearly got an early goal on a header, but it hit the crossbar and bounced straight down. An inch lower and the ball would have been buried in the net. But, alas, it was not to be. Then, a few minutes later, the Irish had another opportunity, but the strike sailed just over the net.

That seemed to waken the visitors who scored not once, not twice, but three times. The Irish were in shock and the fans speechless. Then the home team stiffened their resolve and tried to turn the tide. The intensity picked up and the Irish effort put pressure on the visitors.
Before we knew it, senior Ethan La Pan squeezed the ball through the Bulldog defense to Daniel Leonard, who blistered the ball into the net. Irish 1 - Bulldogs 3. A few minutes later the half ended, but the shift in momentum was clear.

The Irish players returned to the pitch with more than two minutes of halftime left, and the visitors quickly followed, causing the referee to start the second half early. The eagerness of the Irish players became immediately evident as the put relentless pressure on the visitors, so much so that the Bulldogs had to foul to slow the onslaught. Ethan La Pan stepped up to take the free kick. As Thomasville stacked a wall of four defenders, the Irish organized around them. After La Pan struck the ball, it traveled to the right of the wall, then curved significantly to the left and into the net! Three minutes into the half, Irish 2 - Bulldogs 3.

The Irish were overjoyed, but the fans screamed for more. The Irish did not disappoint. Less than 2 minutes later, the Irish men overwhelmed the visitors and senior Ian Tierney struck the ball as it slid through a crowd for a goal!! With that, the Irish had tied it up! 3-3. And still there were 34 minutes left in the match.

For a while, the game seemed evenly matched again, and both teams exchanged offensive efforts and defensive gems. Less than 10 minutes to go.... Senior Garrett Pippen, the Irish keeper, was put the test. Again and again, yet each time, he denied the Bulldogs. Then, with
less than a minute left in the match, the Irish mounted a final attack and sent the ball down the left side. Thomasville somehow punched the ball forward off of an Irish player. The ball was thrown in to a Thomasville player who popped the ball up. As the home crowd looked
on in disbelief as the ball bounced into the net with 9 seconds left.

Crestfallen, several Irish players fell to the ground. As they collected themselves, the Irish put the ball in play, but were not able to get a clean shot on goal. Sadly, the luck of the Irish ran out. Final score: Irish 3 - Thomasville 4.

A bitter loss to swallow, but every parent, fan and friend could not be more proud of the 2010 Fighting Irish soccer team. We love each and every one of you!

Here is a link to the game story that appeared in the May 12 edition of The Augusta Chronicle