Santino Stiglianese scored his second goal late in regulation to tie the score, and Republic hung in to knock off Springfield Catholic in a penalty kick shootout — handing the Irish their first loss of the season, 4-3, in Republic Wednesday night.
In the shootout, Stiglianese scored the first for Republic, mirroring Springfield Catholic’s opening kick. Diego Zuniga also found the net for Republic to keep things even. Republic goalkeeper Xavier Ulshafer made a key save on the third kick, diving to his left to block the Irish attempt. That set the stage for Kleber Perez to give Republic a 3-2 lead. Both teams converted their fourth kicks. Springfield Catholic kept the match alive with a fifth kick, even though Ulshafer got a hand on it. Senior captain Brayden Tharp then stepped up to secure the win for Republic, triggering a team celebration.
For Republic, it was a complete effort in which they sustained some of the flashes of excellence they’ve shown early this season. Coach Jesus Zuniga said the difference was how well his players played together.
“We saw glimpses of it before now. We just haven’t been able to play a full 80 minutes, and tonight we had to go 100,” he said. “Building from the back, trusting one another. We played together, and that’s a testament to our captains.”
Mason Cole got Republic off to a fast start when he scored at the 33:58 mark, helped by an assist by Stiglianese. Springfield Catholic responded with a penalty kick at 5:00 to level the score at 1-1.
Republic regained the lead after halftime at 34:45, with a goal from Stiglianese, assisted by Diego Zuniga. Stiglianese knocked in the ball as he slipped to the turf, making the score 2-1.
But Springfield Catholic seized the momentum with two quick goals to take the lead. Erick Fuentes equalized at 28:33 with a goal from the top of the box on the right side. A deflected ball from Chris Silva rolled into the right side of the net at the 27:00 mark, giving the Irish a 3-2 lead.
Republic tied the game in the final minutes of regulation, as Stiglianese scored his second goal to make it 3-3. That set up two scoreless overtime periods and a Republic win in the final shootout.
