Drew Payne scored the winning goal in overtime as the fourth-seeded Gresham/Bowler boys soccer team defeated No. 5 Wautoma 3-2 in the first round of the WIAA Division 4 regional tournament Tuesday in Gresham.
The Wildcats’ win sets up a regional championship match Thursday against No. 1 Stevens Point Pacelli, which beat No. 8 Antigo 8-0 Tuesday, in Stevens Point. Pacelli and Gresham/Bowler tied in a regular-season match in August.
Payne, a senior, broke the 2-2 tie in overtime after beating two Wautoma defenders in the left corner. He then lobbed a perfect strike over Wautoma goalie Weston Malnory’s head that landed in the side of the net.
“It felt amazing,” Payne said. “I just wanted us to keep going, and keep that high intensity, give our very best until the end. That’s what we did.”
Payne also scored a goal and had an assist in regulation.
Since the WIAA eliminated overtime for the regular season, it was both teams’ first experience with the new overtime rules for tournament play. The teams played a full 20-minute period. Payne’s goal avoided the match being decided by a shootout.
“The kids played hard,” Gresham/Bowler coach Nate Boucher said. “They wanted it more.”
Payne got the scoring going in the first half, breaking through the middle of the Wautoma defense and beating Malnory one-on-one.
“He’s special,” Boucher said of Payne. “He can take over a game, like in the overtime. He does attract a lot of attention. There’s usually three of four guys surrounding him. He finds the a way to put it in the back of the net, or he finds someone to put it in there.”
After the Wildcats (16-3-3) gave up a goal to Wautoma (5-9-3, 2-1-1 South Central), Payne again attacked the left side of the field, then sent a perfect cross to freshman teammate Drew Haffner on the right side for the backdoor goal and a 2-1 lead.
As Wautoma adjusted to corral Payne, Gresham/Bowler’s offense went quiet in the second half.
“They kept pushing me out to the corner,” Payne said. “I was having a lot of problems with crossing. They started crowding that middle in the second half.”
Wautoma’s Jonathan Duarte tied the game when he got a ball past Gresham/Bowler goalkeeper Neal Cerveny.
In overtime, Gresham/Bowler played with renewed energy and began attacking the way it did to start the match. Once Payne gave the Wildcats the lead, he fell back into the defense and Gresham/Bowler ran the clock out to win the match.
“They brought the intensity, for sure, in overtime,” Boucher said.
Cerveny finished with 10 saves.
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