Yesterday's Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference showdown between No. 3 Calvert Hall and No. 2 Archbishop Curley had all the makings of a boys soccer classic.
From the opening whistle, the teams went at it with the intensity of a playoff game, fighting for every ball and debating every call as an overflow crowd -- lining the perimeter of the field, two and three deep in places -- hung on every kick.
There was only one thing missing -- a goal.
After 80 minutes of regulation and 10 of overtime, neither the Cardinals nor the host Friars could put the ball in the net, and the game ended in a scoreless tie.
For Curley (15-1-1 overall, 15-0-1 league), it ended both a 10-game overall winning streak and a 30-game home winning streak. The Friars kept intact their 33-game unbeaten streak against Maryland opponents.
Much more, however, they clinched the No. 1 seed in the MIAA A Conference playoffs, meaning they'll most likely face unranked Gilman rather than No. 10 Loyola when the first round begins Tuesday.
For Curley coach Pep Perrella, however, what matters is the result, and Calvert Hall (17-1-3, 12-1-2) probably will figure into that equation.
"If we didn't meet again in the finals, I'd be real surprised," said Perrella, whose defending league champions defeated the Cardinals, 2-1, in the teams' first meeting earlier this season.
"The difference this time was we didn't get the two great goals like last time. Today it was an even game, and the tie was very indicative."
Although Calvert Hall held a 14-12 margin in shots, both teams had a handful of excellent scoring opportunities.
Calvert Hall's Dave Federline just missed a goal in the opening minutes, hitting a floater off the crossbar. Later, forward Gino Amasia shot a header just wide left.
"I thought we took it to them from start to finish," said Cardinals coach Bill Karpovich, a bit frustrated by all of his team's narrow misses. "We've hit the goal post all year long. We outplayed them today, but we didn't get the bounces."
Curley, as well, had its chances. Midway through the first half, forward Steve Ball took a hard shot that was saved with a diving effort by goalie Scott Simmons. Then, 15 minutes into the second half, Mike Bailey shot just wide right after Giuliano Celenza's direct kick.
Both teams took just one shot in the overtime.
"We played good defense, but, offensively, we couldn't get anything going," said Ball, who credited Calvert Hall with taking the Friars out of their game. "I would've liked a win."