THE 10TH TIME IS JUST AS SWEET: Somerset rides strong second half to district title win over Maroons

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Somerset players celebrate after the Jumpers' 3-0 victory over Pulaski County to claim the 47th District championship on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024.

SOMERSET - Both times Pulaski and Somerset have played each other on the pitch this season, it ended up being a close game. Fans in attendance Monday night were in store for no different in the clash for the 47th District title. The Jumpers were shooting for their 10th title in a row, but through one half of play, neither offense could score.

Head coach Tyler Gillum said before the game whichever team scores three goals was going to win this game, and I guess Coach Gillum needs to go buy a lottery ticket or something because he hit the nail on the proverbial head, with the Jumpers' offense finally awakening over the last 40 minutes in a 3-0 shutout victory over their rivals. Well coach, what happened in that second half to get your team to wake up?

"It's hard to beat a good team three times, and hats off to Pulaski they have a great team. What they do, they do well. We knew we were going to have to weather the storm and come into the second half with a bit more pep in our step. We found our rhythm and after flirting with the corner kicks all night, we finally connect on some in the second half. There are a lot of good teams in our region, and Pulaski is definitely one of them, so after the way our season ended this was a big win for us," he elucidated.

Andrew Tomlinson had a quick attempt in the first minute of the contest that went over the top of the goal, before Pulaski's Landon Hamilton had the first Maroon shot in the eighth minute that was deflected away. An early yellow card on Pulaski eventually led to a shot from Aidan Tucker, although Keegan Keith provided a save in net for his team. He had another save in the 11th minute on a quick breakaway attempt from Tomlinson.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Somerset junior Noah West (6) looks to dribble past Pulaski County senior Julio Morales during the Jumpers' victory over the Maroons on Monday.

The Somerset defense stepped up in the next few minutes, as Noah West had a fantastic slide kick to prevent a shot on the goal from Julio Morales and a header by Ethan DaSilva was saved by Landen Lonesky in the 12th minute. Owen Lewis had a look in the 22nd minute that was also saved by Lonesky. Dilan Perez went on the attack over the next several minutes, having three separate looks at the net that were all no good.

Tomlinson had a really good look at the net in the 32nd minute, but Keith was able to deflect it away on a dive in the net. The state's second-leading goal scorer, Tyson Absher, finally found his first good look in the 36th minute, but it was nullified by an offsides call. The two teams went into the break in a scoreless tie, with it beginning to look like the first team that could score a goal would win this one.

Morales had the first good look of the second half in the 44th minute, although his shot sailed wide. Tomlinson had a really good look at the back of the net following a fantastic pass by Kean Taylor that was no good after a possible missed foul in the box. Tomlinson and Absher continued to have looks at the net that were stopped by Keith in the first 10 minutes of the period. Finally, Absher would score in the 53rd minute, as he made a nearly impossible shot while falling down that snugged into the right side of the net for a 1-0 Somerset lead.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Pulaski County sophomore Landon Hamilton (8) goes on the attack past Somerset senior Andrew Tomlinson (5) during the Maroons' contest against the Jumpers on Monday night.

Absher had another look off a corner in the 57th minute that was saved by Keith. The two goalkeepers in the contest, Keith and Lonesky, were really shining with their ability to control the box. A header from Bryson Church was just narrowly off in the 58th minute, but he connected on his second attempt four minutes later, with his header off a corner finding the back of the net to now give the Jumpers a 2-0 lead with less than 20 minutes left in the contest.

A free kick that sailed over the goal from the Maroons in the 64th minute led directly to another Somerset goal as they were able to quickly get the ball down the field. Church had his second goal of the night as he was able to rebound a shot from Absher to have a clear look at the goal, with the junior running the ball across the goal line and then running into the back of the net himself to put his team up 3-0.

Absher had a crazy bicycle kick that nearly put Somerset up 4-0 in the 68th minute, but Keith managed to snag the ball for yet another save. A shot from Leyton Bramble a minute later was saved by Lonesky as the Maroons were beginning to get desperate in the final 10 minutes. Lonesky got another diving save in the 72nd minute, before a shot from Jackson Parmalee narrowly missed the top part of the net. A late yellow card on Absher proved to be dangerous for the Jumpers, but they were able to hold on the defensive end and celebrated their district title win a few minutes later with a 3-0 shutout of their crosstown foes. Although he acknowledges that region is very based on the luck of the draw, coach Gillum believes in his team to make another run in next week's tournament.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Somerset junior Noah West (bottom) executes a slide tackle to prevent a shot from an opposing player during the game between the Briar Jumpers and the Pulaski County Maroons on Monday.

"Region is a lot about the luck of the draw. There are roads to the championship that turn out to be a little bit more easy. Can we be disciplined in how we play? If we play like we did tonight, I love our chances next week. I've said it since I started coaching these boys six or seven years ago, I'll pick them any day of the week and twice on Sundays," he explained.

The 47th District All-Regular Season Team was announced following the conclusion of the game. Representing Casey County was Jared Murrell and Blayne Shepherd, representing Pulaski County was Julio Morales, Dilan Perez and Leyton Bramble, and representing Somerset was Aidan Tucker, Tyson Absher, Andrew Tomlinson and Landen Lonesky.

Both Somerset and Pulaski County will advance on to next week's 12th Region Tournament.