SOUTH PARIS – For a split second Thursday night, Oxford Hills boys soccer coach Bob Foster thought he saw an all too familiar sight.
As high-scoring Erskine forward Mike Cotnoir blistered a shot toward an open spot in the top left-hand corner of the Oxford Hills net, Foster felt another tough loss hitting his team in the waning moments.
To the rescue came senior keeper David LaRoach, who came out of nowhere to save the potential game-winning goal with 1:37 left in regulation and help preserve a 0-0 tie in the KVAC regular-season finale for both squads.
The Vikings’ final attempt in capturing a victory nearly ended in defeat when the Eagles (7-5-2) were awarded a corner kick with 1:45 to play. As Jamaar Bender’s kick appeared to be bounding away to safety near the top of the 18, Cotnoir quickly gained control of the ball on his left foot and with a screen of players from both teams in front, boomed it toward the opening.
“I said here we go again,'” commented Foster. “Usually you can’t see those. It was a big save.”
“That was a good shot,” added LaRoach. “I just came out and (caught) it.”
The save was one of two key stops by the senior keeper down the stretch.
The Vikings (0-12-2) had controlled momentum for a 10-minute stretch in the second half before Erskine reserve Colby Foster got off a quality shot from the wing with 22:15 left on the clock. As Colby’s bid headed toward the top shelf area, LaRoach leaped high to barely deflect the ball over the cross bar.
“It was a hard shot to save,” said LaRoach. “It was up in the lights and placed in a perfect place. I just got it.”
Neither team did much offensively in the first half, which saw nine harmless shots placed on goal by the two squads. The Eagles used their controlled passing attack to hold the edge in time of possession, but the Vikings didn’t allow them many chances to penetrate the 18 area.
“They clogged it,” said Erskine coach Phil Hubbard of the middle of the field. “We tried to spread them out more in the second half and that was a big difference.”
The Eagles duo of Cotnoir and Duy Lyford were limited in both their shot attempts and their touches.
“The first time we played them, we didn’t have (Tyler) Gilman back there in the middle,” said Foster. “(Cotnoir) and (Lyford) are fast. They made me nervous.”
Oxford Hills had two minor scoring opportunities in the overtime sessions, but Erskine keeper Levi Dennison made a pair of easy catches.
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