The Orono Red Riots needed a slew of standout individual performances to survive two overtimes and two rounds of penalty kicks in their thrilling boys Class C North championship win on Tuesday night over Mount View.
But among those many strong showings, the one that sealed the deal for Orono came from goalkeeper Matthew Allen.
The senior goalie stood between the posts and faced 10 shots from the Mustangs during those two rounds of penalty kicks. After the two teams had kept pace with each other throughout the shootout, they entered the ninth kick tied.
Allen’s teammate Dominic Madore put his kick home for Orono, and then Allen delivered the critical save to put his team up by one with just one kick remaining for each team. Freshman Maxximus Pillsbury matched Allen’s heroics, and sent the 10th and final kick into the net to seal the come-from-behind win after Orono had battled back from a 2-0 deficit earlier in the contest.
“For me, and I think most of the team agreed, we felt like we had the momentum. So when it came down to PKs, we’ve obviously been practicing them, preparing for this situation,” Allen said after the dramatic win. “We knew this team was competitive, they were very good. But for me and the others, I think we were confident. We knew our abilities, we knew what we could do in the PKs. And I think it was just a matter of staying calm and converting, and that’s what we did.”
It’s not uncommon for a goalie like Allen to provide the game-defining save in a penalty kick shootout. What’s much less common, however, is for a goalkeeper to step up and score one of the penalties for their team.
That’s exactly what Allen did in the first round of the penalties, when he provided a crucial fourth score for Orono that kept them alive.
“So I actually always pride myself as the best PK taker on the team,” Allen said with a laugh. “And yesterday I may have skied a few in practice, so my teammates maybe weren’t exactly excited that I was in the top five.”
But when he stepped up for the kick, he knew his team needed it. And he was confident he could deliver.
Even with that preparation and confidence, the double duty of playing in goal and kicking a penalty came with its share of pressure.
“Saving the ball and kicking, it’s definitely stressful,” Allen said. “But after I got my kick out of the way, I was like, ‘OK time to focus on just saving — doing what I can do.’”
He and his teammates earned a trip to the Class C state title game on Saturday against returning champs Hall-Dale.
