By PAUL GOTHAM
Kyle Pezzulo made more than 100 saves during the regular season. None more important than the stop the Greece Odyssey Leopard made early in the second half of Saturday’s Class B1 quarter-final.
Pezzulo turned away a penalty kick in the 44th minute, and Greece Odyssey went on to beat Greece Olympia, 2-0 in Section V Class B1 quarter-final action.
“After that save, I just got chills all over my body,” Pezzulo said. “I was like ‘we got this game. This is our game.'”
Twenty-two minutes later, Kameron Watt tapped home the eventual game winner.
“If Kyle doesn’t make that save, the momentum is going against us,” Watt said. “That’s all we needed.”
At the last second, Pezzulo saw just enough of a clue to make his move.
“I was staring at his eyes, and he was just looking right back at me,” Pezzulo said of Olympia’s Brandon Bruno. “I had no clue where he was going. But when he went to take the kick, I saw his hips open up to his right, so I was like he has to be going that way. A little bit of luck was involved, but you need a little luck.”
Pezzulo lunged to his left and smothered the attempt.
Kyle Pezzulo turns away a second half penalty kick for @Odyboyssoccer pic.twitter.com/3NPwp0jw4c
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 21, 2017
Watt’s game winner started at midfield where Liam Seeley led Kent Johnson over the top. Johnson beat a defender along the right side and slotted a shot to the far post.
“There was a defender there kinda on the side,”Johnson explained. “I just crashed the net like I’ve been told to do. He kinda made a mistake. He took a bad touch and I was able to get it and put it right where Kam was.”
Watt stayed with the play and knocked it home.
“That’s his goal,” Watt said of his teammate. “No matter what, that was going in. I saw Kent who was driving right where coach has been telling him to all practice right in front of the goalie. When he was coming across, all I told him to do was redirect the ball away from the goalie.”
In between Pezzulo’s save and Watt’s goal, Parker Ange kept the Leopards on track.
The junior defender was there on the goal line to head away a sure tally when Pezzulo made the initial save with a sliding stop outside the six-yard box on Olympia’s Guy Kadge .
“That’s happened countless times where I’ve made the first save, and Parker is right behind me to back me up,” Pezzulo noted.
After Pezzulo deflected the attempt, the ball lofted into the air in the direction of the goal and looked destined for the back of the net when Ange interceded.
“He’s solid back there. Not much is going to go wrong when he’s back there.”
Mason Walker converted a penalty kick with 7:21 remaining for the final margin of victory.
Odyssey and Olympia, Monroe County Division IV rivals, split the season series with the Leopards taking the first meeting in overtime, 2-1. Olympia (9-7-1) returned the favor by an identical score on October 11th.
Odyssey (7-9-1) will face the winner of top-seeded Pal-Mac vs. No. 8 seed Newark in Wednesday’s semi-final. Odyssey beat Newark 2-1 earlier in the season.
Great article – fantastic photos!!