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MIKE READLINGA lead quickly became a deficit as the Cowboys struggled to find discipline and eventually lost to Davie Nova 2-1.
FORT LAUDERDALE - Gaither's Tony Barekat stood just inside the penalty box in front of Davie Nova's goal, spinning in slow circles, stopping every few seconds to bury his face in his hands.
Goalkeeper Antonio Cotroneo let loose with several guttural yells as he walked aimlessly across the field, slamming a fist into his palm. The rest of the Cowboys could do no more than collapse on or around the team bench.
This is not only what losing in the Class 5A state semifinals will do to a group of spirited teen-aged boys.
This is what losing one of the most important games of their young lives will do to a team already tasting an appearance in the championship game.
With team captain Trevor Scott watching from the bleachers behind the bench thanks to a suspension for a red card in the region final and Richard Jackson, their most physical presence, sitting after receiving his second yellow card of the night, the Cowboys watched as a one-goal lead quickly turned into a one-goal deficit and a heartbreaking 2-1 loss.
Nova (18-1-3) will play Seminole (22-5-3) at 7:30 tonight for the state championship.
Despite the driving rain that turned the Lockhart Stadium grounds into more of a swamp than a field, the Cowboys were most victimized by themselves.
Gaither (18-7) received six yellow cards, including Jackson who was carded twice for delay of game, causing him to miss the final 15 minutes.
Jackson is typically the first sub off of coach Eric Sims' bench but he plays a vital role in winning balls in the Cowboys box and outleaping defenders.
Add in the fact part of his duties Wednesday night were to help fill the gap left by Scott's absence and his disqualification was the biggest boost Nova could have gotten.
"We needed him in there," Gaither defender Eric Lee said of Jackson. "He's a big guy, he's our enforcer. It was like losing another captain."
Gaither scored early when Barekat hydroplaned a free kick past Nova keeper Juan Vasquez. That lead stood for 62 minutes before the Titans, buoyed by the suddenly open Cowboys' midfield, tied the score on Juan Vargas' shot just inside the near post.
The goal clearly elevated Nova's spirits and made Gaither change from trying to protect it's lead with nine men in the box to trying to regain it's advantage.
Four minutes later Vargas struck again with a beautiful 24-yard rocket that caromed off the cross bar in the net.
"I looked up and saw nobody there so I took the shot," Vargas said through an interpreter. "I shot it high and knew the goalie had no chance."
The deflection off the bar led to dejection on the Cowboys bench as Gaither did all it could to push the game into overtime, even pulling Cotroneo up to forward on a corner kick.
His shot went wide and so did Gaither's chances of playing in today's final game.
"The last 20 minutes of the game we were just trying to win the game," Sims said. "The last 10 or so I packed the box and played one up front and it ended up killing us. We controlled the ball for the first 30 minutes but the second half it seemed like my guys slowed down.
"I don't know why."