[01/24/01] St. Aloysius rallied from a two-goal deficit to win its 11th in a row, 5-4, in a shootout Tuesday at St. Andrew’s

“I’ve never seen a comeback like that,” St. Al coach Shirley Agostinelli said. “It was unbelievable. Our fans never sat down.”

Michael Strickland tied it at 4-4 with an over-the-top shot from outside the 18 near the end of regulation.

“It was just a beautiful shot,” said Agostinelli, whose Flashes (11-1) clinched the division championship with two wins over Madison-St. Joe last week.

The Saints (5-9) seemed as if they were on the way to ending St. Al’s winning streak at 10 games as they took a 2-0 lead at the half. The home team scored its first three goals on penalty kicks.

“We started so flat. It reminded me of our first game,” Agostinelli said, referring to her team’s only loss.

“In the first half, we were losing at midfield. We were lucky to be down just 2-0.”

Beau Theobald, Patrick Sadler and Michael Head all scored in the second half before Strickland tied it to force two scoreless overtimes, then the shootout. Blake Warnock also had an assist.

But it was defense that was the difference, Agostinelli said.

Goalkeeper Andy Gough had 11 saves, one on a penalty kick with about 15 minutes remaining.

“Andy saved the game for us,” she said.

In the shootout, both teams scored on their first two tries. Strickland opened with a goal and Michael Engle connected on a rekick after the St. Andrew’s goalie came out of the box to stop his first shot. The next two Saints missed, but St. Al’s Head and John Theobald hit the back of the net to seal the win.

“This was a wakeup call for us,” Agostinelli said.

“It shows that any team can beat you at any time. We got it together just in time. Everybody on this team is totally dedicated. They’re very unselfish.”