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© St. Petersburg Times, published January 24, 2002
TAMPA -- There will be no rematch for the Western Conference title this year.
Bloomingdale and Plant square off tonight after the Bulls defeated Gaither 1-0 and the Panthers knocked off Brandon 2-1 in the semifinals on Wednesday at Gaither.
Plant lost the title to the Cowboys last year.
Gaither (16-5), plagued by red-card suspensions all season, was at full strength Wednesday, but Bloomingdale showed the same gritty play and hustle evident in two earlier wins against the Cowboys.
Bloomingdale (13-1) got the lone goal of the game in the 63rd minute, when Tom Davison pushed a cross from Todd Cripe past a knot of defenders and Gaither goalie Jared Swindle.
Five minutes later, Swindle (nine saves) kept the Cowboys in the game with a spectacular diving save of Cripe's penalty kick.
Swindle's heroics weren't enough, though.
The Bulls' defense, led by sweeper Ryan Smith and goalie Chris Sedlak, limited Gaither to five shots in the second half.
"We can't get big heads now and think we're great," Bulls coach Samuel Isajar said.
"We just need to stay humble, work hard and keep playing clean."
Plant (8-1-4) played a solid first half, taking a 1-0 lead on Graham Jankura's ninth goal of the season on an assist by Tommy Howell.
Brandon (15-6-1) tied the game in the 43rd minute on Neil Brooks' goal.
With eight minutes remaining, Howell took a loose ball at midfield, raced 40 yards to the top of the box and blasted a shot into the upper corner for the game-winner.
"Last year, we relied on (Times co-Player of the Year Bobby) Boswell to dribble through everyone and shoot," Panthers coach Dennis Derflinger said.
"This year, we're actually a better team because we have had to find more creative ways to score."