Shawnee’s Sam Tenwalde (8) keeps the ball away from Bexley’s Liam Kauffman during Saturday night’s Division II boys soccer state championship match in Columbus. See more high school soccer photos at LimaScores.com.
Don Speck | The Lima News
COLUMBUS — Shawnee’s Tenwalde twins helped bring home a boys soccer state championship.
In the overtime, penalty-kick shootout, Shawnee goalkeeper Jack Tenwalde made three saves on four penalty-kick shots after the two OT periods.
And Shawnee’s Sam Tenwalde scored the game-winning, penalty-kick goal.
Shawnee knocked off Bexley 1-0 (3-1 in the penalty-kick shootout) to win the Division II boys soccer state championship Saturday at the Columbus Crew’s Lower.com Field.
“I’ll be honest, I didn’t even know it was the winning PK,’’ Sam Tenwalde said. “I had no clue. When everyone starting running at me, I said, ‘All right.’ ’’
It marks Shawnee’s first boys soccer state championship and the first by a boys soccer team in the area.
“I’m very proud. It’s for the community,” Shawnee coach Ryan Quatman said. “It’s for Shawnee. It’s for everyone at home.’’
Austin Miller added, “It’s kind of surreal. I’m taking it all in. To be the first team, it’s nice to bring it back to northwest Ohio.’’
Scoring for Shawne on the PKs were Austin Miller, his brother Caleb Miller and Sam Tenwalde.
“It’s a huge milestone for the program,” Sam Tenwalde said.
Jack Tenwalde made a diving save to his right on the first shot.
Then, he made a diving save at the right posts.
Then, Tenwalde had a diving save at the left post.
“It’s just a feeling,” Jack Tenwalde said. “I just know where they are going. It’s a mental instinct. I don’t know how to explain it.
“The second save was the best. That’s the one I sat on. For any keeper to save three PKs in a shootout, is mind-blowing.’’
Both teams missed their first PK shots.
Then, Michael Brenner scored on a PK shot to the lower left to give Bexley a 1-0 lead.
Austin Miller went mid-level right and hit the net to tie it at 1.
After a Jack Tenwalde save, Caleb Miller scored on a shot right down the heart of the net to give Shawnee a 2-1 lead.
Ater a left-post save by Jack Tenwalde, Sam Tenwalde fired his shot just inside the left post.
That gave Shawnee the PK shootout 3-1 and the match, 1-0.
Tenwalde then ripped off his shirt and charged to the Shawnee cheering section to celebrate the state title.
“I took one look at the keeper. He was leaning right, so I went left,’’ Sam Tenwalde said. “I did (take off my shirt). I knew I couldn’t get a card at that point.’’
It marks Shawnee’s third time at the state tournament (2001, 2020, 2022) and first trip to the state championship match.
The match was tied at 0-0 after regulation.
After two 15-minute overtime periods, it was still 0-0.
Both teams had 18 total shots.
Shawnee had six official shots on goal, while Bexley had two shots on goal.
Bexley goalkeeper Drew Martin made six saves. Jack Tenwalde had one official save before the PKs.
“It was a hard-fought game by both teams and very evenly matched,” Bexley coach Jason Goggins said. “It could have gone either way. They had chances. We had chances. It really stinks having the state championship come down to PKs, but that’s what’s soccer all about.’’
In the second OT, Shawnee’s Austin Miller and Noah Scheid both had headers deep in the 18-yard box, but both went over the crossbar.
“I was really proud of our back line,” Noah Scheid said.
It was a matchup of the Shawnee, full-charging power offense against the Bexley finesse-passing and defensive counter-attack game.
For most of the match, it got bogged down and cluttered in the midfield.
Shawnee had two players go down in the second half with leg injuries, Austin Miller and Noah Neth, but both returned to a few minutes later.
With 31 minutes left, Shawnee’s Sam Tenwalde had a shot from 7-yards out, but Bexley goalkeeper Martin was there with a leaping save.
Miller limped out with 30:27 to go, but returned at the 27:50 mark.
With 15:30 to go, Bexley had a shot from 12-yards out, but it was cleared off the line by Shawnee defender Caleb Miller.
Shawnee’s Austin Miller had a header from the heart of the box off a Neth throw-in with 2:25 left, but Bexley goalkeeper Martin gobbled up the save.
The best scoring chance in the first half came off the foot of Bexley’s James McCann, who pounded a missile shot from 22-yards out and hit clanked off the crossbar.
That came with 2:25 left in the first half.
Shawnee goaltender Jack Tenwalde said, “That scared me so much. I thought it was going in until I heard it hit the bar. My heart dropped.’’
The Shawnee defense had plenty of duty in the first half, with Caleb Miller making three key stops and Neth had two.
Quatman played on the 2001 state team and coached the 2020 team.
“It was really fun as a player and it’s a lot more fun as a coach,” Quatman said. “I’m really glad these guys get a lifelong story.’’
Soccer history: This was the ninth time a boys soccer team from the area has reached the state tournament.
The only teams to reach the state championship match are Bluffton (2019) and Shawnee this year.
This was Bexley’s eighth trip to the state tournament. The Lions won the state title in 2003 and 2005.
Tom Usher wrote this story for LimaScores.com. Reach The Lima News sports department at 567-242-0451.
