LEXINGTON — Maybe the fourth time will be the charm for the Minutemen.
Lexington will play Bay Village Bay in the Division II state semifinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Sandusky Perkins High School’s Firelands Regional Medical Center Stadium. The winner will punch its ticket to Saturday’s Division II state championship match at Lower.Com Field in Columbus.
Lexington has made three previous trips to the state semifinals, most recently in 2019. Each time, the Minutemen have come home empty-handed.
Lexington fans can show their support for the boys soccer team on Wednesday as they head to the state semifinals against Bay Village Bay. The public is invited to line the square as the bus leaves the high school at approximately 4:30 p.m.
Two years ago, Lex rallied in the second half only to see it slip away in the final 22 minutes in a 3-2 loss to Warren Howland in Barberton. The Minutemen fell to Chagrin Falls in a shootout in 2003 and dropped a 5-1 decision to Revere in 2011.
This year coach Peter Them’s team won a regional championship with a 3-2 overtime victory over Lima Shawnee on Saturday. Luke Roberts scored the game-winner on a header off a Jacob Hathaway throw-in with 8:07 remaining.
The goal capped a back-and-forth match that saw the Minutemen take a 1-0 lead before giving up a pair of second-half goals in an eight-minute span. Lexington scored the equalizer with 9:44 remaining in regulation.
“It was really a tale of momentum,” Them said. “We had it early, they got it back in the second, and we turned the tide late.”
Lexington (16-1-4) will try to avenge its one regular-season loss Wednesday night. The Rockets (17-2-3) blanked Lex 1-0 at Bay in early-September. That was part of a rugged six-match stretch that saw Lex score five goals.
“We’ve evolved,” Them said of the slow start. “At the beginning of the season we just weren’t connecting. We weren’t putting all the pieces together.
“To put all the pieces together feels great. We’re cooking at the right time.”
So are the Rockets, who are making their 18th Final Four appearance.
Bay advanced with a 1-0 win over Richfield Revere, avenging a 4-2 regular season loss. Kia Sanfilippo scored in the seventh minute and the Rockets pitched their 14th shutout of the season.
Ethan Jacobs leads a balanced Bay attack with 14 goals and 16 assists. Million Evans has 12 goals and 14 assists, while Reed Clark and Luke Manak have eight goals apiece.
Lexington counters with a record-setting defense. Defenders Jack Depperschmidt, Terrance Corbin Jacob Hathaway and Nathan Cramer along with keeper Garet Weaver have teamed for 13 shutouts this fall.
“My back line saves me. The credit really goes to them,” Weaver said after Lex blanked Bishop Watterson 1-0 in the regional semifinals. “They protect me a lot.
“We’ve got a really good team, but a lot of guys who are starting this year didn’t get to start in the past. For all of us it feels fresh. It’s exciting.”
