Owls Men lose semifinal heartbreaker to Potomac State

Prince George's Men's soccer coach, Jim Bell, desperately wanted his program to win its semifinal game after falling short in the first round of the playoffs last year.

That will have to wait at least another year.

The Owls men's season came to an end with a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Potomac State College of WVU in the Region XX DIII Semifinals on Thursday evening at Prince George's Community College.

Prince George's could have punched their ticket for the finals if they were able to get past Potomac State, and would have faced their biggest rivals, Montgomery College, who had beaten Howard Community College in the earlier game.

The Owls men haven't been able to make it past the semifinals in the last couple of seasons and the story this time was much the same as the previous years.

"We just can't find the net," said Jim Bell whose team also failed to score against Potomac in the first meeting earlier during the season. "Both times we've played, we can't score a goal. It's one of those things. It's what soccer is all about."

"They are a good team defensively, even though we outplayed them. I'm sure if you look at the shot charts, we had a lot more shots than they did."

Indeed, the Owls Men had majority of the possession and outshot Potomac 18-7 in a losing effort. However, their inability to clear the ball midway in the first half from a corner kick proved to be there downfall. This lack of concentration was the deciding factor in the knockout stage of the semifinal draw.

More so, much credit should be given to the Potomac State's goalkeeper and his defense that were able to shutout the Owls offense. He stopped five shots against him in the first half and made what could have been a game-saving diving stop to his left on a Yannic Formatum attempt late in the half. The freshman forward was able to get a one-on-one opportunity in front of the goal, but he could not cash in.

The Owls player's had more great looks early in the second half but unfortunately they were unable to capitalize on their opportunities.

The Owls men finished the season with a 13-6-2 record. This was a great improvement when compared to last season, and should be highlighted as the stepping-stone in bringing success back to the program.

By Machel Millwood