Tigers prevail in four overtimes to reach final

If it weren't for the play of senior goalie Mike Wiest, Naperville North would not have been the No. 2 seed in the sectional or made it to the sectional semifinals.

Once again, Wiest was on top of his game Oct. 28 when the Huskies played Wheaton Warrenville South deep into four overtimes of their Class 3A postseason match.

But 90 seconds from heading to penalty kicks, one innocent shot from WW South's Andrew Bellmer slipped through Wiest's hands and into the net allowing the Tigers to snag a 1-0 victory in the 119th minute to advance to Oct. 31's sectional championship against No. 1 Neuqua Valley.

"It is a heart-breaking way to lose," North coach Jim Konrad said. "It is a hard one to take. It is the worst-case scenario for the kid who made our season and he takes it on the chin in the end and that is tough. I feel terrible for Mike. He's had a year where he has kept us in game after game after game."

The Tigers (20-4-2) had the better of the play throughout and kept pressure on the Huskies (16-3-2), but Wiest was there to the tune of 14 saves.

Bellmer said he was just hoping that Wiest would have to play the ball.

"We almost played 120 minutes of soccer and we got right down to the end and when you get a chance like that and you have to put the ball near the frame," said Bellmer, who now has 20 goals. "It is sad to see something like that happen to their goalie, but when you put the ball on frame good things can happen."

Two of North's three losses came on its home field to WW South. The Huskies lost 1-0 to the Tigers back on Oct. 4. North was unable to score against the Tigers in 199 minutes against WW South this season.

The Tigers and Wildcats will meet at noon Oct. 31 at North to determine the sectional champion.