Caldwell Slips Past UHA in PKs to Reach Region Finals for First Time

For 80 minutes of regulation and 10 minutes of overtime, no one could find the next.

In the penalty-kick shootout, neither side could seemingly miss.

Blake Vivrette’s PK on the final attempt of the tiebreaker lifted Caldwell County to a 5-4 win in the shootout and a 1-0 victory over University Heights Academy in the semifinals of the 2nd Region soccer tournament in Hopkinsville.

Vivrette’s game-winner came after Tiger goalkeeper Corbin Nichols made a diving save on UHA’s final attempt — and came after Vivrette got a reprieve when his initial try sailed over the crossbar.

But University Heights keeper Will Maxwell was called for coming off the line too early, giving Vivrette another shot.

The Caldwell senior did not miss a second time, setting off a celebration among those wearing blue and gold at the Stadium of Champions.

The contest turned into a physical affair, with officials seemingly reluctant to call any penalties that might reward one side or the other with a cheap scoring opportunity.

The contest was stopped briefly in the second half when players got into a wrestling match on the side of the field nearest the crowd. But a two-point takedown was the closest either side came to scoring before the shootout.

Connor Dill, Mason Price, Ethan Alexander and Ethan Hale all converted PKs for UHA.

Meanwhile, Haiden Ball, Weston Phelps, Filippo Taccola and Christian Jones all made for Caldwell as the teams matched shots through the first four rounds of the tie-breaker.

Nichols gave the Tigers a chance when he stopped a low kick toward the corner by Preston Thomas.

That set the stage for Vivrette and the eventual game-winner.

Caldwell will carry a 9-12-2 mark into Thursday’s regional championship game, but three of the Tigers’ losses this season were COVID forfeits.

University Heights, which beat Caldwell 2-1 in the All A Classic regional championship earlier in the season, finishes the campaign with a 12-11 record.

Caldwell will face Henderson County (16-3-4) in Thursday’s 6 p.m championship. The Colonels advanced with a 4-2 win over Madisonville-North Hopkins in Wednesday’s other semifinal.

Caldwell and Henderson met once during the regular season, with the Colonels taking an 8-5 decision in Princeton on Aug. 12.