Fleetwood earns shootout win over Oley Valley in District 3, Class 2A boys soccer quarterfinals

Two weeks after being beaten by Oly Valley in the first round of the county play-offs, Fleetwood got their revenge.

The top-seeded Tigers defeated the eighth-seeded Lynx 3-0 in the District 3 Class 2A quarterfinals Saturday night in Fleetwood.

“It’s the first time we’ve (not) lost all year, and I think we might have been full of ourselves,” Tigers coach Keith Schlegel said of the previous matchup between the two teams. “This time we put the ball in the net.”

Sophomore Justin Hartline opened the scoring for Fleetwood midway through the first half with an 18-yard free kick. Senior Owen Schlegel had an assist.

The Tigers (17-1-1) nearly doubled their lead later in the half, but a hard shot from senior Daniel Alvarez hit the post. Fleetwood finished the first half with five shots.

The Tigers capitalized on a corner kick early in the second half when junior Nathaniel Herb headed in a header to make it 2-0. Herb’s goal came off a beautiful corner kick from senior Grant Hernandez, who was credited with an assist.

Fleetwood scored their last goal with just over 15 minutes left in the second half when youngster Josh Avila fired home a powerful strike from distance. Hartline provided the assist.

“Scoring three goals is a big plus for us,” Schlegel said. “It’s good to score a goal.”

Ollie Valley (13-9) had little offense, registering just one shot on goal in the first half. “Lynx” took one corner kick.

“They had a vendetta that needed to be settled,” Ollie Valley coach Sean Mills said. “They played really well.”

The shootout win was the Tigers’ 12th of the season. They scored just two goals in October, both coming in a 2-1 quarter-final win over the Lynx on October 15.

Fleetwood will continue its district playoff streak against No. 4 seed Lancaster Mennonite at home in the semifinals on Tuesday at 7 p.m. On August 31, the Tigers beat the Blazers 4-0.

“(We have) confidence that we’re putting the ball in the net and not conceding goals,” Schlegel said. “It’s good that there is zero. It boosts confidence.”