Playing in the postseason for the first time since 2017, the Tompkins Cortland Community College men's soccer team went to overtime Sunday before falling, 3-2, at Niagara County Community College. The Panthers entered the games as the #10 seed while the #7 Thunderwolves now advance to take on #2 seed Herkimer College in the next round of the NJCAA Region 3 playoffs.

The Panthers and Thunderwolves played once during the regular season, with Niagara winning 3-0. The Thunderwolves wasted little time grabbing the lead on Sunday, scoring in the sixth minute of play. But unlike the first time the teams played, this time the Panthers responded. Just four minutes later, Noah Shiel (Newark Valley/Newark Valley H.S.) evened the score, netting the first goal of his career off an assist from Terry Paw (Ithaca/Ithaca H.S.). The back-and-forth continued in the 17th minute when Niagara reclaimed the lead, but the Panthers again had an answer. With just under nine minutes left in the first half, the Panthers earned a penalty kick, which Caleb Marsh (Cortland/Cortland H.S.) converted to tie the game at 2-2 heading into the half.

Neither team could find the net over the next 45 minutes, thanks in large part to a save on a penalty kick by Panther keeper Nathan Stuart (Fulton/G. Ray Bodley H.S.). The game went to extra time deadlocked at 2-2, but Niagara broke through with the game winner in the seventh minute of overtime.

With the loss, the season ends in the quarterfinal round of the Region 3 playoffs. It's the second playoff appearance for the Panthers since their string of 12 consecutive years in the playoffs ended in 2015.