Matt Johnson found himself in the right place at the right time Thursday night, but the problem was that he was facing the wrong direction to make an easy shot on goal.

The sophomore forward simply made a spin move and kicked the ball left-footed and still put it past Moravian Academy goalkeeper Vinny Lamberti for a 1-0 Northwestern lead just two minutes into their semifinal game against the Lions.

While the first goal came quickly, the next goal would have to wait for another 67 minutes as the two teams battled back and forth. The unwelcome news for Moravian Academy was that both goals were scored by the Tigers, who advanced to the finals by knocking off the top-seeded Lions 2-0.

“I saw the ball coming and just made a move to get a foot on it and was able to kick it with my left foot for the goal,” said Johnson of the acrobatic move. “We wanted to get an early goal and come out strong, so it was big to get that one.”

While the early lead was part of the game plan, the Tigers (13-4-1) went into somewhat of a hibernation after Johnson’s goal, helping to cause the lengthy period between their two goals.

“It was a great goal, and it was big to get the early lead, but it turned out to be a blessing and a curse because we kind of rested on that goal,” Tiger head coach Nate Hunsicker said. “We didn’t feel one goal was going to be enough and it would have been nice to get a second early one to make things more comfortable.”

As the game went on, both teams showed some frustration and the physical play of the game intensified with some pushing and shoving leading to plenty of foul calls. Both coaches also believed there were other calls that were not made, which only led to more physical play.

With 28:00 left in regulation, Northwestern’s Dylan Moss was given the first yellow card and sent to the sidelines. A few minutes later, Northwestern goalkeeper Mason Crocco made an impressive save and was leveled by Gennaro Mazzella, who was given a yellow card on the play.

For much of the second half, it was Moravian Academy (14-3-0) threatening to tie the game instead of Northwestern looking for a knockout punch. Crocco and the defensive back line for Northwestern were able to hold off the attack.

“We made a change and moved Mason [Brensinger] to help contain No. 17 [Mazzella] and it worked really well for us. I don’t think he ever really had much of a look for a good shot,” said Hunsicker.

“Our three guys in the back really did a hell of a job tonight and Crocco was excellent, too. To shut out a team like this, you really have to be playing good defensively.”

As the tension continued to build, Northwestern put pressure on the Moravian Academy defense, and it eventually paid off when Josh Zellner fired a shot that glanced off Lamberti and rolled into the net for the insurance goal the Tigers had been looking for. The goal was the nail in the coffin for the Lions, who were unable to pull themselves back into the game.

“We’re really confident right now and we have Mason [Brensinger] and Colin [Coffield] back, so I think we’re going to be in good shape for that game,” said Johnson of the upcoming championship. “We’re really pumped, and we’ll have a lot of confidence going into that game.”

IDENTICAL FOES ... The semifinals matched teams from Northwestern and Moravian Academy on both the boys and girls side of the Colonial League bracket and there is a similar situation for the finals. This time, it is Northwestern and Southern Lehigh squaring off in the two championship games, which will be played Saturday at Catasauqua High School.

CLIMBING THEIR WAY UP ... Many times, the finals come down to the top two seeds playing each other, but that is not the case in the boys tournament. Northwestern took down top-seeded Moravian Academy and Southern Lehigh, the three seed, beat Notre Dame Green Pond, who came in seeded second in the other semifinal matchup.