Keller’s Overtime Goal Lifts Owatonna Boys Soccer to Section Finals

Junior Daniel Keller scored his first goal of the season in a 1-0 win over Lakeville North on Thursday night to send Owatonna to the section finals for the fourth straight season.

Keller's goal came on a rebound of a shot taken by senior Mark Hanson. Coach Bob Waypa said, "We have some great guys up top that can score. We got the goal from Daniel Keller. He usually sets up everyone. But he picked the right time to get this first goal of the season."

Waypa said, "The talk right before overtime was to put everything in the danger area." He said a number of good things can happen when teams are able to put that kind of pressure on. A flurry of players in front of the Lakeville North net left the goal keeper on the ground after blocking Hanson's shot. After Keller deposited the game winner into the goal, his teammates chased him to the player bench where team members piled on top of one another for the celebration.

Waypa is proud of his team's defense, which has led to a 10-game winning streak with eight wins by shutout. "Work as a team defensively. Don't give them any easy looks." A slow start, however, led to a few early scoring chances for the Panthers. Junior Aidan Buryska made about five first-half saves.

The win moves the Huskies into the section final at Rochester Mayo on Wednesday, October 21. Mayo blanked Farmington 4-0 Thursday. The Huskies tied Mayo 1-1 on September 10 and Waypa is looking forward to the rematch. Owatonna finished as the section runner-up in 2014 after winning the title the two previous years.

Owatonna Girls' soccer

The Owatonna girls' soccer team was eliminated from the Section 1AA tournament 5-0 by Lakeville North on Thursday. It's the third straight year the Panthers have ended Owatonna's season. The Huskies were 10-7-1 this season. Seniors include Emily Zeise, Rebecca Sedivy, Meghan Rethemeier, Steph Kretlow, Brooke Otterson and Arianna Olson.

Top-ranked and No. 1 seed Lakeville North has won the section title the past four years. The Panthers will face upstart Rochester Century in the finals. Seventh-seed Century has scored shootout upsets of Rochester Mayo and Lakeville South in the first two rounds of the playoffs.

Owatonna girls' tennis

Section 1AA individual play began Thursday. Owatonna will send three players to the section finals on Tuesday, October 20. Tessa Rahrick went 3-0 in singles, while Macey Tellijohn and Meghan Schuler were 3-0 in doubles.