Late goal by Duttweiler leads Niceville over Navarre

NICEVILLE — When the pressure is on in a game with championship implications, coaches usually look to their leaders to make a play.

It should come as no surprise then that the Niceville boys soccer team’s two captains connected for the biggest play when Friday’s Region 1-5A quarterfinal game against a scrappy Navarre team was on the line at Twin Oaks.

With the game tied and time dwindling down after the Raiders had seemingly stolen the game’s momentum with a game-tying goal, Spencer Vandecar won a ball and passed it ahead to fellow captain Tanner Duttweiler.

Duttweiler moved up into the box and knocked the ball past diving Navarre goalkeeper Andrew Conley to give the Eagles a 2-1 lead that they would hold on to for the win.

The Eagles (15-5-5) will travel to Tate for the region semifinals on Tuesday.

Duttweiler’s goal came in the game’s closing minutes after Navarre (10-7-2) had just tied the game a few minutes earlier. When Duttweiler received the pass from Vandecar, Navarre’s fans and players desperately wanted an offside call. However, the officials ruled Duttweiler to be onside and the goal stood.

“Spencer won the ball and was able to put a good pass through to Tanner, and Tanner put it away for us” Niceville coach Wes Nelson said. “Those are my two captains. When the game is on the line, that’s who you look for to step up.”

The game-winning goal allowed the Eagles to breathe a sigh of relief after surrendering the lead. Trailing 1-0 since early in the first half, the Raiders tied it up when Niceville goalkeeper Zack Plaice sprinted out to meet a loose ball toward the top of the box. However, Plaice slipped on the soggy field, allowing Navarre’s Nate Jensen to control the loose ball and tap the ball in from a tough angle for the equalizer.

With new life and plenty of momentum, it looked like the Raiders were destined to force overtime. Niceville had other plans.

“I thought we had a chance after that goal,” Navarre coach Jeff Knapp said. “I thought we would be taking our chances in overtime or penalty kicks. But you never know what will happen.”

Jensen’s goal erased a Niceville lead that had stood since around 20 minutes into the game, when Vandecar tapped in a rebound off a free kick to give the Eagles an early lead.

“Defensively, we dominated,” Nelson said. “We gave away two shots and the one goal was because the keeper slipped. We were a little sluggish on offense, so we’ll have to improve that if we’re going to make a run.”