The Montgomery boys soccer team won a thriller under the lights in Red Raider Stadium by defeating rival Muncy by the tightest of margins in Mid-Penn action, 1-0, in overtime to improve to 5-4 on the season and 3-2 in the Mid-Penn.

The 80 minutes of regulation was packed full of excitement with both teams trading offensive chances with neither team being able get the touch they needed to send the ball across the goal line. When Red Raider midfielder Camden Dalrymple sent a great shot off the right goalpost, Muncy countered with sending their own shot off of the left goalpost later in the game.

Muncy’s offensive trio of Austin Hartzel, Landyn Burns and Kyran Lisembee were creating chances for the Indians but the Red Raider defense routinely bent but did not break.

The game was the physical match that both teams expected coming in.

Montgomery then experienced an unexpected but significant setback as junior goalkeeper Conor Irwin was temporarily knocked out of the game..

Sophomore midfield Jackson Wilver grabbed a red jersey off the bench and hopped into the game for his new assignment as a keeper.

“I was really impressed by Jackson’s willingness to throw on the gloves without any training this season or hesitation to bail us out a jam in a 0-0 match,” said Montgomery coach Michael Sherman. “Conor took a heck of a shot but is a true competitor and I knew he was chomping at the bit to get back in there and contribute to the game. Jackson held down the fort for over 10 minutes until Conor could be evaluated my the medical staff and return to his position.”

Neither team was able to find the net through either regulation half and overtime set in.

“There gets to be a hero tonight here under the lights, who is it going to be?” Sherman said he told his team after regulation.

Montgomery would only need 2 minutes, 11 seconds to secure the victory. Senior captain Cameron Wilver collected a ball in the Raiders midfield, took aim and played a perfectly place chip over the Indians defense sending his forward Dylan Sherman off to the races against the fast Muncy defenders.

Sherman had the step he needed and brought the ball in on an angle into the box towards Muncy keeper Bodie Moyer. Moyer decided to come out at Sherman to cut down on the angle of the shot.

Just before encountering Moyer, Sherman chopped the ball back to his left getting by Moyer who was going to ground for the left-footed tap from close range to win the hard-fought match.

“Dylan showed great composure to get around Bodie in a high-pressure situation with the potential winning shot on the line,” Sherman said. “Bodie is an excellent goalkeeper that played a great game and had that angle covered about as well as he could have given the circumstances.”

Coach Sherman noted that Montgomery had a student section at the game.

“In my six years as head coach at Montgomery, tonight was the first time I have witnessed a true student section at a boys soccer match Football players, cheerleaders, golfers, band members, girls soccer players and others I did not recognize united together to cheer on the boys when they needed it most, making for a very special moment,” Sherman said. “Watching them run the ‘Raider Nation’ flag up and down the track in an effort to pump up the crowd will become a great memory of mine and possibly a turning point for our program. They were truly our 12th man out on the field tonight and contributed to the great win.”

The Red Raiders (5-4) take on Towanda at home on Monday while the Indians (3-4) host Shamokin.

Montgomery 1, Muncy 0 (OT)

Mo–Dylan Sherman (Cameron Wilver), 82:13.

Shots: Mu 10, Mo 6. Corners: Mu 4, Mo 4. Saves: Mu 5 (Bodie Moyer), Mo 10 (Conor Irwin).

Records: Muncy (3-4).