Andrew Armstrong’s teammate Luke Dinielli bided his time and patiently waited for the right moment.
With less than a minute remaining in the Northwest A Group 1 sectional final, the Pompton Lakes senior looked up at the clock and new time was running out in the final game of his prep career.
Following 79 minutes of scoreless soccer, fate and opportunity knocked for Dinielli and Pompton Lakes with just 58 seconds left in regulation.
That’s when the center midfielder took a cross feed from senior teammate Jared Ekkers and buried a 23-yard, game-winning missile into the right back corner of the net to give Pompton Lakes a dramatic 1-0 win over sixth seeded Kinnelon at Lakeside Middle School in Pompton Lakes.
After a scoreless first half, Pompton Lakes played aggressively and almost scored three minutes into the second half when freshman Armstrong’s shot on goal in front of the net hit the top crossbar.
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