PINE GROVE - Lehighton may have been seeded sixth in the District 11 Class 2A boys soccer tournament, but it sure didn't play like a middle-of-the-road opponent.

The Indians gave third-seeded Pine Grove all it could handle in their quarterfinal round contest Tuesday.The usually-dominate Cardinals were scuffling from beginning to end, and even after 80 minutes, the issue wasn't settled.But just 2:43 into the first overtime, David Snedden's kick from the left side sailed freely into the back of the net for a 3-2 Pine Grove victory.Game! Set! Match!As Lehighton players dropped to theirs knees, Pine Grove felt more of a tone of relief, then celebration.The Cardinals had narrowly avoided a huge upset to a team it had defeated twice in the regular season in the Schuylkill League to advance to Thursday's semifinal round."It's a tough way to lose ... in overtime," said veteran Lehighton coach Dave Yob. "No matter who lost, there was going to be disappointment after a battle like this."Toss in the fact that Lehighton was nursing injuries and was not at full throttle, and it makes the near upset even more impressive.The Indians had every chance to come out with the victory as it missed on several scoring opportunities early in the game."We had three good chances in the first half, we just didn't put them in (the net)," said Yob. "Late in the first half they had opportunities to put them in and did. Sometimes that's the way it goes."Indeed, the Indians were ratcheting it up at the onset. There was a shot from Luke Blisard, which just missed as the crowd oohed. Moments later, another shot from the Indians went wide of the target.Finally, there was a goal, but it came from Pine Grove's Alex Witmer as the clock read 18:33 to play in the first half."The first 10-12 minutes, they took it to us," said Pine Grove coach MarkWyllie. "After that, I thought we took control of the game."Well almost. The Indians answered with a tying goal at the 30:42 mark when Tyler Dietz nailed a shot through the back of the net for the equalizer.Then in the second half, the Indians took a 2-1 lead, as sophomore Isaiah Everett booted in the go ahead goal at 15:36 mark.Lehighton needed only to hang on for the final 24 minutes and 24 seconds to claim a major coup.But up stepped the Cardinals with their over-the-top pressing attack."I thought if we pressed them, they would give up the ball," said Wyllie.He was right on as Mike Elo came up with the tying score less than a minute after Everett had put Lehighton in front."It was a great match,"said Wyllie. "We were fortunate enough to finish three times and them two."UNDERDOGS ... The Indians didn't play like an underdog, and the youthful squad picked up valuable postseason experience. "We're looking forward to the future," said Yob.MISSING IN ACTION ... Yob said his team was bent on trying to bring home a win for injured offensive standout Frank Bokan, who will be undergoing surgery.STATS ... Pine Grove outshot the Indians 10-8, and had the upper hand in corners, 4-1. Lehighton goalie Logan Motz had seven saves, with Jason Stopper getting four for the winners.