BLOOMINGTON — The Bloomington South boys soccer team never knows where the offense is going to come from, but its defense is another story.
The Panthers posted their 11th shutout, despite giving up nine corner kicks and making keeper Nate Summerlot save the day more than once. But the zero stuck, and a goal generated by two sophomores near the end of the first half was enough to push South to the regional final in Seymour on Saturday with a 1-0 win over Columbus North Thursday, Oct. 15 in semifinal action.
"They played well. They played very well," South coach Jake Kabrick said. "Kudos to them. We knew what we were going to get and eventually, we ended up sliding a fourth guy back there. But our back line played well.
"We hang our hat on defense, and we hung a zero on the board."
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The second-ranked Panthers (15-1-3) set up a rematch with No. 1 Castle (17-2-1) in Saturday's regional final. Castle nipped Floyd Central 1-0 on a goal in the last 90 seconds in its regional semifinal.
Summerlot was tested just 10 minutes in, deflecting a sharp free kick from 30 yards out just over the crossbar.
Columbus North's next best chance to score came in the 57th minute when Parker Gribbins received a pass just inside the box and ripped a shot that caromed off the far post and right to teammate Manuel Valle, whose one-timer hit off Nathan Orth's back and right to Summerlot.
"Nate, without a doubt, best game we've seen him play," Kabrick said. "Coming into this game, with the weather and some of the hiccups we had during the year, especially against them, one of the biggest mistakes he made was against them. So, to come out and have the night he did and some of saves he made, I tip my hat to the kid."
In front of him, Orth, Adrian Dusleag, Max Serafin-Odle, Sam Van Lue, Sebastian Schaefer, Andrew Wiley and others forced the Bull Dogs (8-6-4) to keep recycling.
"We had great communication," Dusleag said. "We were really good at getting the first and second balls. So once we got those, it was up and out. We weren't that effective in actually keeping the ball and possessing it.
"But it was a well-fought, gritty win. We're going to have to play those games. Even if we're not the better team, we're getting the win. We're not conceding which is a big deal. We got a lucky goal. All we needed to win."
Just one is all they needed
The first half was fairly evenly played possession-wise. CN had more chances. It didn't matter.
A South throw in from the right sideline into the box found Miles Melick, who bumped the ball to his right where sophomore Ryder Nguyen sent it straight across the face of the goal, belt high. Sophomore Gage Borden was marked but was able to one-time it out of the air and into the left side of the net.
It was the lone lightning strike of the night for the Panthers.
GOOAAALLLL! Gage Borden one-timer off a cross from Miles Melick. 1-0 South, just 1:39 to half. pic.twitter.com/FWoWc3rMpF
— Jim Gordillo (@JimGordillo) October 15, 2026
"Gage has been busting his butt all year and that's the reason he's gotten to start," Kabrick said. "We play a couple sophomore but haven't started many over the years. To be a sophomore who gets starting time and a lot of minutes, it goes to show the work he puts in.
"If there's a guy I want on the back post on a ball, it's Gage because the technique he has the ability to finish that he has is second to none on this team."
From there, it was just a matter of holding on for 40 minutes.
"It's a lot of pressure because if we concede, they're just going to sit back and it's going to be hard to score," Dusleag said. "But we got that first goal and felt a lot more confident. I'm confident our defense is not going to concede."
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Defense never rests, Bloomington South boys soccer wins regional semi