PLATTSBURGH — The Section VII Class C soccer playoffs have been filled with upsets as the top-seeded Lake Placid boys’ team is the only No. 1 or No. 2 seed still alive heading into tonight’s finals.
The C girls’ championship game is set for 5 p.m. at the Plattsburgh Athletic Complex, with No. 3 seed AuSable Valley opposing No. 4 seed Northern Adirondack. The 7 p.m. boys’ title game has the Blue Bombers taking on No. 3 seed Seton Catholic.
Girls
AuSable Valley vs. Northern Adirondack, 5 p.m.
The Patriots (6-11) and Bobcats (8-9-1) are strangers to one another. AuSable Valley competed in the Northern Soccer League’s Division I this season, while Northern Adirondack played in Division II.
In the semifinals, Rachel Knapp scored two goals as AuSable Valley rolled past No. 2 seed Ticonderoga, 6-0. The Patriots broke it open right from the start, taking a 5-0 lead at the half.
The Bobcats, meanwhile, took a different route to the finals. They dropped a 4-3 decision to Seton Catholic in the quarterfinals but advanced by forfeit because the Knights used ineligible players.
Northern Adirondack didn’t stop there, as Kourtnee Smith’s second-half goal lifted the Bobcats to a 1-0 victory over state-ranked and top seed Lake Placid in the semifinals to earn their title shot.
Boys
Seton Catholic vs. Lake Placid, 7 p.m.
The Knights (6-10-1) lost two 2-1 games to No. 2 seed Northern Adirondack during the regular season before turning the tables come sectional time.
Adam Tedford scored two goals and assisted on another as Seton Catholic played one of its best games of the season with a 3-0 semifinal victory over the Bobcats.
In the other semifinal, the top-seeded Blue Bombers (10-7) had a battle on their hands against AuSable Valley.
The Patriots held a 10-5 shot advantage, but Lake Placid won where it counted the most — on the scoreboard.
Haile Thompson’s first-half goal, assisted by his brother Nzoni, gave the Blue Bombers a 1-0 win and a berth in the final.
The Blue Bombers and Knights have already met twice. Lake Placid won two close games — a 2-1 victory in Lake Placid and then a 1-0 decision in Plattsburgh when the Blue Bombers scored with 22 seconds left in overtime.
