Lodi Advance To Regional Final With A 1-0 Victory Over River Valley
A penalty kick was the difference in this regional matchup as the Lodi Blue Devils hosted the River Valley Blackhawks.
Lodi’s Colton Woller was given two penalty kick opportunities in their victory. He earned the first chance just before halftime in the 37th minute after Woller was tripped up in the box. River Valley’s goalkeeper Dylan Perry had all the pressure as he was tasked with stopping the spot kick.
Perry, a senior goalkeeper committed to Iowa Central Community College, chose to dive to his right and subsequently made an amazing save on the PK. However, on the ensuing corner kick, one of his defenders committed a handball infraction while defending a shot on the near post. At first, the center ref let the penalty go, but the nearest assistant referee called for another penalty kick, which the center ref eventually gave in.
Just a minute later, Woller had a chance at redemption. He went to the same side as before while Perry dove the opposite way, giving Lodi a 1-0 lead with just a minute until the break.
Neither team was able to score during the second half as Lodi was able to preserve their shutout. River Valley didn’t go down without a fight; they were creating chances and throwing what they could at the Blue Devil defense. With just minutes left in the game, the Blackhawks had a golden opportunity to draw even–a one-on-one chance in front of the net.
This time, it was Lodi’s netminder, Jacob Allen, who had to step up. He made the stop on the initial shot, then quickly got himself up and dove at the feet of the next attacker. He won the ball clean. A gutsy double save to keep the match from going into extra time.
Senior defender Nathan Robbins praised Allen–he said that “Jacob’s amazing, and he won’t tell you he’s amazing.” Robbins said that Allen frequently hangs on what he could have done better instead of realizing how great of a play he just made, adding “Jacob you just made a great save. Focus on that.”
The back line, of course, also had to perform well to earn the shutout. Robbins and his other center back, Josh Tatro, did great to prevent long balls from getting in behind, and they were able to effectively clear the ball throughout the match.
Lodi will face the No. 4 seed Winnebago Lutheran in the regional final Saturday, Oct. 24, at 7 p.m.
Winnebago Lutheran advanced after a scoreless draw and a 4-3 shootout win over No. 13 seed Central WI Christian. Although they haven’t faced each other this season, Robbins states that these two teams are familiar with each other.
Watch the full interview to hear Robbins on facing Winnebago Lutheran and what’s driven this Blue Devil squad.
Post-match interview with defender Nathan Robbins
