GRAND FORKS - West Fargo senior Tarley Gaye looked like he couldn't believe it.
As the clock ticked to zero on the Packers' game against previously unbeaten Fargo Shanley, Gaye buried his head in his hands and almost collapsed into the waiting arms of a waiting teammate on the sideline.
West Fargo advanced to the North Dakota state boys soccer championship game for the second time in school history. And Gaye played a major role.
Gaye scored twice in the final 10 minutes to lead the Packers to a 3-2 victory against the Deacons in the semifinals Friday at the South Middle School Soccer Bowl.
"I wanted this so bad," Gaye said. "I wanted to be in the state finals. I knew we would get this far."
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Shanley (17-1-3) took advantage of playing behind a stiff wind in the first half.
The Deacons took a 1-0 lead on an A.J. Jacobson goal in the 38th minute.
West Fargo, which had lost to Shanley twice during the regular season, won the possession game in the first half despite going against a brisk headwind.
Jade Johnson, the hero of the Packers' 2-1 win against Bismarck in the first round, knotted the game at 1-1 in the 47th minute.
Johnson put West Fargo in the semifinals with a penalty kick in the 50th minute against the Demons.
Shanley answered with a rifle shot by freshman Conrad Hager past Packers keeper Braden Schmid in the 52nd minute.
"We've seen him do stuff like that a couple times," Deacons coach Michael Breker said. "We've seen him do half-bike, side volleys. He didn't surprise anybody because he's done it before. But it's pretty every single time he does it."
West Fargo pushed its players up in the final 15 minutes, putting midfielder Gaye in position to get some shots on net.
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Gaye responded with a goal in the 71st minute to tie the game at 2-2.
He drilled the game-winner in the 75th minute.
The Packers, who last advanced to the finals in 2000, will face Bismarck Century at 3 p.m. today for the first state title since the tournament began in 1995.
"They beat us twice during the season," Gaye said. "We weren't going to let them do it again."
FIRST HALF: 1, S, Jacobson (unassisted), 38th minute.
SECOND HALF: 2, WF, Johnson (Dillard), 47th minute. 3, S, Con. Hager (Jordan), 52nd. 4, WF, Gaye (Johnson), 71st. 5, WF, Gaye (Kroke), 75th.
SAVES: WF, Schmid 7. S, Glogoza 8.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Heath Hotzler at (701) 241-5562.
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Hotzler's blogs can be found at www.areavoices.com
