ARDEN HILLS -- Duluth Marshall goalie Derek Randall began second-guessing himself during the shootout against South St. Paul in the Minnesota Class A high school boys soccer quarterfinals Wednesday at Mounds View High School.
The senior, who relies on aggressive play, came out to make a save and Packers midfielder Mike Ward kicked in the rebound to tie the game in the 78th minute. Randall relived that moment during the shootout.
"That was one were I shouldn't have come out," Randall said "[I] judged it and it cost me. I started to second-guess myself and that half-second cost me again in the shootout. I have to go with my gut every time."
Randall was hesitant in net during the shootout, but the Hilltoppers' scorers weren't, as Marshall defeated South St. Paul 4-3. Mickey Huska, Patrick Sheedy, Doug Frey and Jesse Geary scored for the Hilltoppers.
"I just took a deep breath to ground myself before the kick," Huska said. "[Afterward,] it was the best feeling in the world." Marshall (20-2) will play St. Cloud Cathedral at 10 a.m. Monday at the Metrodome. St. Cloud Cathedral, the No. 8 seed, upset top-seeded and defending state champion Benilde-St. Margaret's 1-0 in Wednesday's other quarterfinal.
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Randall often leaves the net to challenge breakaways and shots that might be better suited for a defender. That's proven to be a successful approach as Randall has allowed only 23 goals in 22 games.
Marshall coach Mike Sengbush prefers Randall's aggressive play.
"I need him to be aggressive," Sengbush said. "He has an innate ability to move forward when the ball comes. Randall, Huska and John Fox have been really aggressive and are a major reason we have stepped up in the last two weeks."
The Packers' goal in the 78th minute was deflating for the Hilltoppers, who were two minutes away from the Metrodome. "We wore ourselves out there," Huska said. "We like to go for balls in the air to take the pressure off Randall, but we all got out of position on that one. Right after that, we were down on ourselves."
Frey scored a breakaway goal in the 17th minute for a 1-0 lead, but the senior had two other shots hit the post -- one in the 2nd minute and another in the 33rd. Fox, an eighth-grader, set up Frey's goal with a 40-yard pass. In the 45th minute, Huska corralled a South St. Paul shot between his legs in the front of the Marshall goal and the Packers forward continued to kick the ball. The referee called a free kick for South St. Paul from six yards out, but Randall made a diving save to keep the score at 1-0.
In the second overtime, Randall lunged and punched a header over the net with three second left.
"I love to play aggressive," Randall said. "I like to control my box and play all out." Randall finished with eight saves, while South St. Paul goalie Keith Lowery had four saves.
"It just worked," Sengbush said. "We survived to play another day."
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Duluth Marshall 1-0-0-0--1
South St. Paul 0-1-0-0--1
First half -- 1. DM, Doug Frey (John Fox), 17th minute.
Second half -- 2. SSP, Mike Ward, 78th.
First overtime -- no scoring.
Second overtime -- no scoring.
(Duluth Marshall wins 4-3 in shootout.)
Saves -- Derek Randall, DM, 8. Keith Lowery, SSP, 4.
