With eight minutes remaining in a second overtime session, senior John Bocinsky lined a shot into the back of the net to lift the Wildcats to their first-ever Class 2A state soccer championship at the University of South Florida on Friday night. Winning 3-2, West Shore never trailed four-time state champ Berkeley Prep during the game.

“Honestly I don’t know, I didn’t even look. I knew the way it came off my foot it was going in the net,” Bocinsky said. “The roar of the crowd confirmed it. I didn’t even see the ball go in. I hit the shot, turned and sprinted to the fans.”

The team came from winning only two games in 2008 to this season’s final record of 22-5-0, scoring more than 100 goals along the way. Junior Liam Wixted is one of a handful of holdovers from that 2008 team.

“Never get your hopes down,” he said. “If you have a bad season just keep trying. Just keep training and you can get to the point that we did. You can go all the way.”

The team’s rookie goalie, eighth-grader Alan Joyner, proved himself in the final overtime, saving two hard shots from the Berkeley offense.

“Amazing, he’s a young kid and he has a lot of talent. I showed him, but he did the work,” said goalie coach Bob Robidoux, whose son Ryan, a sophomore, scored the game’s first goal. “He came to practice, was willing to work and worked hard for his team mates and it showed.”

Junior Tyler Moscrip scored the Wildcats’ second goal on a pass from Wixted.

Approximately 300 delirious fans who drove across the state to Tampa were treated to the game of a lifetime.

“It’s a combination of excitement and disbelief. It was an amazing game, amazing game,” head coach John Krehbiel said. ” Like what the heck, they’re a great group of soccer players but this is some amazing stuff. We played so well, and it was just so exciting.”