Akron boots Bath in quarterfinals, 1-0
BY SHAWN VARGO THE LEADER

RIC WENSEL/THE LEADER Bath goalie Mike Rossi goes up to grab a save against Akron in their quarterfinal Saturday, Nov. 10, in Caledonia.

CALEDONIA - Bath Haverling's soccer season came to an end Saturday, Nov. 10 , in the NYSPHSAA Class B quarterfinals as topranked Akron reaped the rewards of a deflected shot to down the Rams 1- 0 at Caledonia-Mumford High School.

The Section VI Tigers, who entered the contest as the No. 1 Class B team in the state, came up with the day's only goal when a shot off the foot of Steve Salcedo deflected off a Rams defender and rolled into the net 15 minutes into the second half. Bath goal keeper Mike Rossi never had a chance to react.

"They took a shot and it was going right at our goal keeper and it hit one of our guys and went right into the corner. You can't save that - it's not possible." said Bath coach Matt Hill.

"We'll be disappointed tonight, but you can't be disappointed with the season. Overall, we accomplished something that we haven't really accomplished since 1996 (when the Rams won the state title). So the guys certainly have something to be proud of."

Bath, which knocked off the state's No. 2 team Wellsville Wednesday, Nov. 7, in the Class B play-in game, came out as the aggressor Saturday. The Rams kept the ball in the Akron zone for much of the first 15 minutes, but were kept from getting off any crisp shots.

Jason Carpenter and Justin Brown got the best chances in the box, but were denied by defensemen. John Smith's shot on goal was stopped by Akron keeper Randy Reiss.

"For 15-20 minutes I thought we played really well and had some really nice chances, but couldn't pop one into the net," Hill said. "Then it was back and forth the rest of the time."

As the first half progressed, Akron's top scorer Andy Tiedt began to make his presence felt as his ballhandling skills and passing game allowed the Tigers flex their offensive muscles. Tiedt got off a pair of shots in the opening half, a header off a direct kick and a low roller - both of which Rossi got to with no problem.

"I thought Nick Badeau did a great job on Tiedt. To my knowledge, this is the first game that he has not scored a goal all season long," Hill said. "Nick's assignment was to stay on him and he's done it great all season long for us and he did it again tonight. He's sicker than a dog, but got out here and did it."

Bath's defensive unit took a hit with 2:04 left in the first half when Dylan Wales was knocked from the game after taking a header from Tiedt.

"It hurt when Dylan went down right before halftime. We had shuffle some things around and that threw things up into the wind a little bit," Hill said.

Akron appeared to turn its aggression up a notch as the second half began and kept the ball on the Bath side of the field early on.

That aggression paid off when Tiedt worked the ball into the left corner of the Bath zone, dribbled into the open and fed Salcedo. Although Salcedo took the shot with the outside of his foot, the deflection made it a strong enough shot to go into the net.

With a greater sense of urgency, Bath's offense nearly tied the score six minutes later when John Smith deflected a free kick in the box to Wednesday's hero Lucas Wales. However Wales' shot sailed over the crossbar.

With 8:35 remaining, Rossi kept Akron's lead to one goal by stretching out to his left to pluck an Akron shot that was heading into the upper corner of the goal.

"Mike Rossi in goal had a heck of a game for us," Hill said. "He put his heart and soul into it and made some great saves."

Reid Gustin then chipped in on defense by denying Tiedt from taking a one-on-one shot at Rossi with 3:45 left.

"All of the defenders did a great job," Hill said.

In the end, Rossi made five saves, while Reiss was credited with five stops, as well.

"I'm sure it will take a couple of days to heal up a little bit, but the guys certainly have something to be proud of," Hill said. "It was a great year and I'm really happy for the guys."