Mike Ryan had just one thought when the pass came from Cherokee teammate Jason Spieker early in the second overtime.
"Keep it low," Ryan said.
Low it went.
Ryan one-timed Spieker's feed from 12 yards out in the 93d minute for a golden goal to give Cherokee a 1-0 win over Timber Creek in Saturday's South Jersey Soccer Coaches Association Tournament final at Eastern.
This was a game between The Inquirer's top two South Jersey boys' teams, and as the score showed, little separated them.
No. 1 Cherokee (20-0-2) earned its first Coaches Tournament title since 1999.
It was fitting that Ryan scored the winner. After scoring 24 goals and earning Inquirer first-team all-South Jersey honors for Cherokee's state-title team last year, Ryan has increased his output.
Saturday's goal was his 29th of the season.
"Great players come up big in big games, and that is what Mike did," said Timber Creek coach Sean Ortzman, whose team is 17-3-2.
Spieker, among the top playmakers in South Jersey, started the winning play by dribbling down the right flank, cutting the ball inside to shake off a defender, and making his pinpoint pass to Ryan.
"I saw Mike in the middle, and when he is open like that, you have to get it to him," Spieker said.
Ryan, who is always tightly marked, realized he didn't have much time to convert the pass.
"I had a man on the back of me and had to one-time it," Ryan said. "I actually hit it with my weak foot."
That would be his right, although the left-footed Ryan has scored plenty of goals with either foot.
In the first overtime, Cherokee almost lost the game and then did lose its goalkeeper. In the 85th minute, Timber Creek's Giuseppe DeLuca crossed a ball from the right flank to fellow 21-goal scorer Jeffrey Morgan.
Sliding in front of the goal, Morgan couldn't get enough of the ball to tip it in. Morgan and DeLuca are among the most dangerous scoring tandems in South Jersey.
In the 86th minute, Cherokee keeper Barry Fitzgerald left the game for good after beating DeLuca to a loose ball and suffering a cut near his nose after DeLuca's momentum forced him to bang into the Cherokee senior.
Killian Baldwin replaced Fitzgerald.
Sophomore Christian Morgan, the brother of Jeffrey, did a good job marking Ryan for most of the evening. The Chargers also had Mike DeFeo frequently providing help defense on Ryan.
Despite the tight coverage, Ryan eventually broke free.
Timber Creek 0 0 0 0 – 0
Cherokee 0 0 0 1 – 1
Goal: C-Mike Ryan.
Saves: TC-Andrew Garcia 17; C-Barry Fitzgerald 16, Killian Baldwin 2.
Contact staff writer Marc Narducci at 856-779-3225, mnarducci@phillynews.com, or @sjnard on Twitter. Find his Rally columns at www.philly.com/narducci
