STATE SOCCER Mooney gains berth in final

Saturday morning, the Cardinals will play Columbus DeSales for the Division II title.
By BRIAN RICHESSON
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
WARSAW -- Fans slopped their way through the mud to greet their team. This win certainly was cause for celebration.
In one of the most dramatic of ways, on the most dramatic of stages, the Cardinal Mooney High boys soccer team made its dreams come true.
Does it get any better?
It's hard to top the Cardinals' 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Granville in a Division II state semifinal Tuesday at River View High School.
But it just may be possible. The one date remaining on Mooney's schedule is Saturday's state championship game at Columbus Crew Stadium against Columbus DeSales, a 1-0 shootout winner over Kettering Alter.
"I never realized it would happen," Mooney senior goalkeeper Tim Reigrut said of his team's championship opportunity. "But it's happening."
The talk Tuesday night centered on Mooney's effort in the frantic final minutes to keep its season alive. The Cardinals (20-2) trailed for 69 minutes in a steady rain and on a field that had players struggling to keep their balance.
"That [Granville] team dominated and the weather took a lot of speed and everything else away from us," Mooney coach Lenny Krispinsky said. "But I'll tell you, there was no quit in these guys tonight."
Walker scores twice
Senior forward Pat Walker gave Mooney hope -- two special times.
Walker scored twice in the final 11 minutes, his second with 2:46 remaining, to give Mooney the victory.
"Those [goals] are what you dream about," Walker said. "To win games, to tie games. It doesn't get any better than that."
On the goal that sent Mooney to Columbus, Walker put away a ball that had slipped through the hands of Granville goalkeeper Tim Flynn. Senior forward Mark Seddon sent the ball from the left, and Flynn wasn't able to keep his hold. Walker was there to head it home for his 26th goal of the season.
"The second goal was just a gift from the goalkeeper," Walker said. "He slips, and I was just there to follow it. That was all Mark Seddon's doing. I just tapped the ball in."
Walker's first goal was a thing of beauty, and it may have given the Cardinals the lift they needed to close out the game.
"We didn't let down at all," Walker said.
Sophomore forward Kiki Willis, who came close a number of times to finding the net, crossed the ball from the right. When the ball came down on the left side of the goal, Walker was diving. His header popped perfectly into the right corner of the goal.
"Things just happen when the ball's at Kiki's feet," Walker said.
After his tying goal, Walker took off on a sprint toward midfield, his arm flailing in the air.
"Their execution was what paid off for them," Granville coach John Daulton said. "It wasn't anything that we did drastically wrong."
Early goal
Granville's aggressive attack resulted in only one goal. It came with 12:14 remaining in the first half, by junior Cody Johnston, on a play that infringed on Reigrut's space.
Credit Johnston for his aggressive play because he kicked the ball out of Reigrut's grasp as the Mooney goalkeeper was leaning down to grab it.
"I had my hands on it, he kicked it and it went through my legs," Reigrut said. "I'm not going to give my opinion on whether it was a bad [no] call. It was a goal either way."
Granville's (18-2-2) goal held up for much of the game, and it put Mooney in an unfamiliar position -- playing from behind. In the end, it was no problem at all.
"This is just another road to state, I guess," Walker said, "and the challenges along the way."
richesson@vindy.com