By PAUL GOTHAM
TJ Tytler continued his recent torrid scoring pace as the No. 4 seed Bishop Kearney Kings defeated the sixth-seeded Geneseo Blue Devils, 1-0 to claim the 2017 Section V Class C2 championship Saturday afternoon at Geneseo College.
Tytler took an Alex Mowry service and slotted it inside the right post for his team-leading 13th marker of the season.
“It was surreal,” the junior midfielder said. “I couldn’t believe it. I had dreams about scoring in the sectional finals, and it’s unbelievable.”
Mowry hit Tytler from 35 yards away with a free kick. Tytler took a touch with his chest before beating Geneseo goalkeeper Matthew Kreher with his left foot.
TJ Tytler gets Kearney on the board with a service from Alex Mowry. 26:16 to go in 1st half: BK 1 Geneseo 0 Class C2 Final. pic.twitter.com/hjVwFyLtv5
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 28, 2017
“Alex played a great kick,” Tytler explained. “I saw it go in the net. It was the greatest feeling seeing that hit the back of the net.”
The tally was Tytler’s fourth in Kearney’s three sectional wins and seventh in the Kings last five games.
“TJ is just an unbelievable player,” Kearney coach Stephen Strauss said.”He has been starting since he was a freshman. He’s always been one of our toughest competitors.”
Strauss pointed to the development of Tytler and sophomore Fernando Furioso and how that combination is reaping benefits in the second half of the season.
“With a whole new midfield this year it just took a little time for him to gel especially with Fernando,” said the third-year coach. “The last the three weeks, four weeks of the season those two have been clicking and that’s just made a difference.”
The title was the first for Kearney since sharing the Class CC title in 2010. The Kings suffered back-to-back finals losses in 2014 and ’15 including a 2-1 heartbreaker in overtime to the same Geneseo program in 2015.
“I’ve never been this happy in my life,” senior Jordan Freed said. “I’ve been here since seventh grade and ever since my first day here it’s been a dream of mine to hold that ‘Block’ (Section V trophy) in my hand. It doesn’t feel real. It’s like a dream come true.”
Kearney (13-5-1) is 10-1-1 in its last 12 games. The Kings will play Byron-Bergen/Elba in the Class C regional qualifier, Wednesday at Avon. A 7 p.m. kickoff is scheduled. Byron-Bergen Elba beat Williamson, 2-0 in the Class C1 championship. Kearney fell to Williamson, 3-2 in its regular season finale.
BK came this close to a 2-0 lead. pic.twitter.com/SOQ8OODNoY
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 28, 2017
Byron-Bergen/Elba (17-1-1) is ranked No. 1 in the most recent NYS Class poll. Their only loss of the season came to Wheatland-Chili on October 6th. They beat Kearney’s semi-final opponent, Red Creek, 4-2 earlier in the season.
Kearney has outscored its opponents 8-0 in the three sectional wins.
VIEW MORE TIM FREED PHOTOS HERE.
Saturday’s contest was delayed 52 minutes when a miscommunication caused game officials to arrive late.
“It was really all about their toughness today, mentally,” Strauss said of his team. “We talked about it beforehand and during the delay that we’re going to win anyway. You can’t sit there and whine and make excuses. You got to just play the game because that’s what you’re here to do and fight for the result that you want. They did that. They were awesome.”
*Updated to include correct schedule for regional qualifier.
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