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COLUMBIA CITY - For 70 minutes, Warsaw and Columbia City's soccer teams played to a 1-1 tie.
It was the other 10 minutes that decided the game. Warsaw (13-2-3) beat the Eagles (9-7-1) 3-1 in Thursday's Columbia City Sectional semifinals.
The Tigers' win avenged their sectional shootout loss to the Eagles last year.
"Warsaw's a fine team," Columbia City coach Bill Duffy said. "They have high level of skills, and they play a very physical game. They took it to us. Getting beat by two by them is no shame."
The key 10-minute span came from the 19:30 mark to the 9:50 mark in the second half. Warsaw's offense blitzed the Eagles goal with several shots.
Two were snubbed at the 19:30 and 19:27 marks, but Warsaw's Kim Cowan broke through for the Tigers when she delivered an unassisted shot over Columbia City goalkeeper Kelly Campbell's head. Cowan snapped a 1-1 tie and pushed the Tigers ahead.
Warsaw's Jodi Wildman added the third and last goal with 9:50 left, a lined shot into the right corner of the net.
"We knew it was a matter of time," Warsaw coach Brent Wildman said. "We knew we were peppering their goal and that it was a matter of time before it was going to happen.
"The fortunate thing is, our goals came from the right places. They were packed in front of their goal. We got our last two goals from outside. That's where we had to score. We play a game that goes down the outside and crosses the ball in. They came through at the right time."
Columbia City scored first on a Cara Blakley goal with 23:13 left in the first half. But the Tigers thwarted any Columbia City hopes of gaining momentum. Warsaw's Bobbi Wildman, who scored four goals in a 7-0 win over Jay County two nights ago, answered less than three minutes later with a goal on an assist from Mandy Bruggeman.
The two teams settled on the 1-1 tie until Warsaw's offense took control in the last 20 minutes.
By adding two goals, Warsaw erased any potential for controversy. The Tigers had a goal wiped away with 13 minutes to go in the first half. They definitely put the ball in the net, but a referee waved it off when he ruled that at least one Warsaw player shoved Campbell from behind before the ball went into the goal.
"We had 'em," Duffy said. "We went up a goal and were in good shape at halftime. We made mistakes on defense twice. They took advantage of both of them. There were a lot of shots they got that we handled. But we didn't handle all of them."
Warsaw's 10-minute stretch where the Tigers' offense dominated at Columbia City's end of the field was the key, Duffy said.
"That is probably the part that cost us the game," he said. "They put themselves in a position to shoot more balls than we did. We just didn't have very many shots."
In the other Thursday game, Homestead (14-2-1) beat Huntington North (6-10-2) 5-1.
Warsaw faces Homestead - No. 7 Homestead - at 3 p.m. Saturday in the sectional championship.
"Our thoughts on this game are summed up in three words, which the team already knows: We can win," Wildman said.
"Our theme all year has been to not dwell on your failures and don't cherish your successes but to dig deep into courage. That's what it will take to pull off a victory. They are beatable. Our style of play can score against them."
WARSAW 3, COLUMBIA CITY 1
First-half scoring:
CC- Cara Blakley goal (Katie Stroup assist), 1-0, 23:13
W - Bobbi Wildman goal (Mandy Bruggeman assist), 1-1, 20:22
Second-half scoring:
W - Kim Cowan goal, 2-1, 16:38
W - Jodi Wildman goal, 3-1, 9:50
Shots on goal: Warsaw 11, Columbia City 3
Saves by goalkeepers: Columbia City 8, Warsaw 2
