Boys Soccer: A tie collection

Jared Wolt scored the Tiger goal (photo by Jim Lindquist)

Tiger coach Julian Buss isn't sure what he wants for Christmas this year but he has already taken one item off his wish list...another tie.

Farmington and Chaska battled to a 1-1 overtime draw Tuesday afternoon in a Missota Conference contest in Chaska. That makes six overtime games in 12 outings for the Tigers who own a 6-2-4 record heading into Thursday's home showdown with conference leader Chanhassen.

"Yes, we have had difficulty generating offense at times," Buss said, "but for the most part we have been solid defensively...Although we certainly would have liked to have won this one, it is the sign of a strong team that we are shutting down our opponent's offense."

Both goals came within a 60-second span early in the first half. Chaska got on the board first with 32:30 left in the half. Exactly a minute later, Blake Smith's throw-in was headed by Caleb Gochenour to Jared Wolt who headed the ball by the Hawk keeper.

Caleb Gochenour assisted on Wolt's goal (photo by Jim Lindquist)

Both teams had their chances the rest of regulation and the two five-minute overtime periods but neither could find the net.

The Tigers played most of the overtime sessions a man short after Smith received a controversial second caution card.

"Even though we were a man short we outplayed them and created scoring opportunities," Buss said.

 Tiger goalkeeper Jake Agnew stopped a season-high 23 shots in the draw.

Thursday's match-up with Chanhassen is pivotal for the Tigers as the Storm stand alone atop the league standings with a a perfect 4-0 record. The Tigers (2-0-2) are also unbeaten in league play but have two ties on their ledger.

"We hope to shake things up a bit," Buss said.

Game time is 5:00 at Tiger Stadium.