In driving cold rain that left players and fans soaked, Acalanes delivered a thrilling 2–1 golden goal victory over Deer Valley in the opening round of the Division 3 NCS Playoffs. Entering the postseason as the #5 seed out of 16 teams, the Dons faced a rematch of an earlier 2–0 regular season win — but this time, the conditions and the stakes added extra intensity.
The Wolverines struck first, capitalizing on a corner kick in the 12th minute to take a 1–0 lead. Acalanes responded with urgency, as Maor Ziskind and Omri Noiman combined to create attacking chances. Strong midfield play in the first half, led by Zachary Birrell and Ben Karpuk (celebrating his birthday!) helped the Dons control possession and steadily tilt the field. The equalizer came in the 35th minute, when Ziskind slipped a perfectly weighted through ball to Harrison Sheffler, who produced an exceptional individual effort — fending off a defender before calmly beating the keeper. Sheffler remained a problem for Deer Valley throughout the game, and nearly struck again just before halftime, but a fingertip save sent the teams into the break tied 1–1.
The second half saw sustained pressure from Sheffler and Noiman, while the Dons’ defense consistently turned away Deer Valley’s advances. Two apparent late game-winners were negated on tough calls, forcing the contest into sudden-death extra time.
Extra time opened with a scare, as Deer Valley launched a long shot from the kickoff that nearly found the net. Caleb Nguyen stayed composed to turn away the chance. Moments later, Acalanes seized control. After a long ball from Eli Romick found Charlie Phillips in the right corner, Phillips beat his defender and delivered a cross into the box. Noiman gathered it cleanly, firing a shot past the keeper’s outstretched hand to end the match just three minutes into extra time. The celebration turned into a slip-and-slide in the rain, complete with a cameo from the boys lacrosse team, to cap a great team win.
Next Up
The Dons travel to Larkspur to face #4 seed Redwood High School in the NCS quarterfinals on Friday at 3:30 PM.
