Normally thunder follows lightning, but in Saturday's boys high school soccer championship match, it was sound that preceded the furious -- and curious -- finish.
Dimond's Jack Sedor put in his own rebound on a penalty kick to give the Lynx an improbable 1-0 win over South at Bartlett High after the head referee awarded a penalty kick in the 80th minute.
"We would have liked to have won it in the run of play, but a goal's a goal," said Dimond coach Barat Killian, who won his first title since taking over the program before the 2013 season.
Sedor's winning strike came after the referee blew his whistle for a penalty during a scrum in front of the South net. The tweet heard round the city was followed by a cacophony of boos from the South faithful as Wolverines players begged in vain for an explanation or reversal.
South coach Mike Montgomery said he didn't have a clear view of the game-changing decision, which came after Dimond's Trask Shamburg headed Sedor's corner kick over the crossbar.
"If it was a foul, it was a foul," he said.
The wild finish came at the end of a tightly-contested match that featured few scoring chances but plenty of tense moments.
"I thought both teams played great soccer," Montgomery said.
Sedor's game-winner almost wasn't. South goalie David Reyes-Velez guessed right on the two-time Gatorade Player of the Year's initial strike, but the crafty forward was in the right place at the right time to thrust the dagger.
The senior -- one 14 on Dimond's roster -- said his heart skipped a beat when he saw Reyes-Velez get to the initial strike.
"Oh shoot," he said. "That was probably what was in my head."
Dimond defender Josh An said watching the second shot hit the back of the net was surreal.
"I can't even describe it," he said.
The game was the first state final meeting between the two heated rivals, at least one of which has now appeared in each of the past 11 title matches.
Until Sedor's heroics, An and Reyes-Velez had been the stars of the match. The South keeper made a pair of impressive diving stops late in the first half to keep things tied, and the Dimond defender did the same when he made a last-second clearance off the goal line on the final play before intermission.
"That was real scary," An said of his game-saving play. "I knew if (goalie Josh Heckenlively) was going to go up for it, there should be someone covering for him. I was darn lucky."
Sedor said An's play was a difference-maker.
"That could have changed the game huge," he said.
South's players were inconsolable after the match, some crumbling to the ground, others screaming in rage. Montgomery ushered them together for a brief consolation speech before urging them to complete a final cheer for Dimond while they watched the Lynx collect the championship trophy.
The South coach said he didn't want to make excuses for the loss by blaming the official's final-minute decision.
"That's soccer," he said.
The title is Dimond's sixth, tying the Lynx with Chugiak for the most boys titles.In Saturday's third-place match, Juneau-Douglas defeated Kenai Central 3-2 in overtime. In the fourth place match, Colony defeated Bartlett 3-0.
Killian said the championship game win was especially gratifying after watching his squad fall in overtime to Colony in last season's finale.
"To see these guys achieve that, it's such a weight off my shoulders," he said.
Contact reporter Matt Tunseth at 257-4335 or mtunseth@alaskadispatch.com
All-tournament Team
Lorenzo Froehle, Bartlett
Daylan Barganier, Bartlett
Ben Sande, Colony
Harrison Menard, Colony
Oswaldo Magallanes, Juneau
Ben Scudder, Juneau
Colin O'Hare, Dimond
Jack Sedor, Dimond
Trask Shamburg, Dimond
Wren Norwood, Kenai
Blake Hepler, South
Talon Stanley, South
Lucas Seymore, South
William Mitchell, West Valley