On a set piece in soccer rarely does the person who starts the play end up finishing it as well. But that is precisely what happened in the District 1-AA tournament semifinal on Tuesday night.

Senior Luke Bernshausen was given a direct kick from 24 yards out and he ended the play by heading it into the goal to provide the Elizabethton Cyclones a 3-2 win over Sullivan South in double overtime.

Bernshausen scored a three-goal hat trick in this one, the first of his career at EHS, and he described the last one that ultimately gave the Cyclones the win, saying, “The plan is to go back post to Braden (Holly) but it went out front and no one was marking me, so I just got my head on it and made some contact.”

Bernshausen got the first goal of the game in the 17th minute on a penalty kick and it gave the Cyclones the early advantage.

The lead would not last long as South’s Luis Ramos knocked in a rebound of a shot by Ayden Hale past EHS junior goalkeeper Noah Lambert in the 24th minute to level the score at 1-1.

The game would remain knotted at that score through the rest of the first half, but Bernshausen collected his second goal of the game in the 61st minute with the help of a fine pass from junior Evan Fulmer to give EHS a 2-1 lead.

“I looked at him and I asked him to give me the drop and he gave it to me,” Bernshausen said.

Lambert came up big several minutes later when Ramos was awarded a penalty kick and Lambert made a diving, sprawling stop to his left to keep the Cyclones in the driver’s seat.

Ramos would, however, get the goal that evened things at 2-2 in the 70th minute off a direct kick and with no one able to break the draw the game went into overtime.

“We had the lead twice and couldn’t hold it,” Cyclones head coach Bill McClay said. “We did better when we possessed the ball and they have their tactics, and it is what it is.

“Lambert’s save on the PK was huge, but they were still able to tie it. This was very similar to the last game we played with them as it was 1-1 at the half, then we got two goals on set plays.”

The first 10-minute overtime produced no scoring but Ramos had an excellent opportunity when he sent a corner kick to the post that Lambert punched out for the save.

Senior Teagan Bernshausen was given a pair of yellow cards late in the second half and will be ineligible for the next game, and Austin Outland was also carded in the first overtime.

On the play, the ball was sent into the South side and Outland and two Rebel defenders were in full chase.

Outland, in his attempt to possess the ball, tried to split the two defenders and their legs tangled and Rebels senior defender Jonah Mintz crumpled to the turf and received a concussion, according to South’s head coach Keith Parker.

“As a coach, you feel for your guys, especially the seniors,” Parker said. “We had plenty of chances but didn’t finish. EHS is good at set pieces and they made it work.

“Unfortunately, Jonah had to come out after that one play as he has a concussion.”

With just over two minutes left in the second overtime, Bernshausen lined up his direct kick at the far sideline from 24 yards out and was able to finish the play with a header past Rebels goalkeeper Aaron Stokes for the game-winner.

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District 1-AA

Boys Soccer

EHS 3-2 (2 OT)

South 1 1 0 0 – 2

EHS   1 1 0 1 – 3

Scoring Summary

First Half

E – Bernshausen (PK) 17:00

S – Ramos (assist Hale) 24:00

Second Half

E – Bernshausen (assist Fulmer) 61:00

S – Ramos (Direct Kick) 70:00

Overtime

E – Bernshausen (unassisted header) 98:00