KINGSLEY — After having to rally to win its quarterfinal match, Mountain View looked to get out to a much better start in its District 2 Class 1A boys soccer semifinal Tuesday afternoon.

Three first-half goals enabled the Eagles to do that, and they went on to notch a 3-1 victory over Old Forge at the Robert W. Klenk Athletic Complex.

“When we got down, we were nervous last game,” said senior Josh Tigue, who scored the Eagles’ third goal. “It was good to get a little cushion so we could play our game.”

Sophomores Blake Norton and Ben Millard also scored for top-seeded Mountain View (16-2-1), which advances to the district final against No. 2 Wyoming Seminary, which defeated No. 3 Holy Cross, 4-1, in the other semifinal. The championship game is scheduled for Friday at 3:30 p.m. at Mountain View.

Against Gregory the Great in the quarterfinals, Mountain View found itself locked in a scoreless duel at halftime and trailed, 2-1, five minutes into the second half before Norton scored three goals in the final 27 minutes for a 4-2 victory.

“It’s much, much harder to get ahead when you’re falling behind,” Mountain View coach Travis MacDonald said. “That (a better start) was the primary goal. We had a couple things different in play. We worked on a lot of different set pieces and finishing in our last practice to really, really understand what we had to do in the next game and they did well.”

Norton made sure Mountain View struck first this time when he scored at 14:05.

Some nifty passing helped the Eagles extend the lead. Joel Tigue fed his brother Josh Tigue, who centered the ball in front. It deflected off a couple of Old Forge players and went to Millard, who beat goalkeeper Arthur Askew at 26:17.

Less than three minutes later, at 29:12, Josh Tigue fired a low shot into the bottom-left corner of the net to make it 3-0.

“I was just there. It was a whole team effort and I was the one who just happened to put it in,” Josh Tigue said. “I don’t think he (Askew) saw it with all the defenders in the way.”

According to MacDonald, crashing the goal in the first half was the difference for his team.

“That was something we’ve lacked on in the past,” he said. “Two out of three goals were generated by crashing the goal. Blake’s first goal was with the left foot on a corner coming up. Joshua’s third goal, same thing. Crashed at the top of the 18 and drove it in. That played a key role in today’s success, just making sure we were crashing the goal.”

He also gave credit to his defense.

“Our defense, honestly, is what locked us in in that first half,” MacDonald said. “They didn’t let anything in behind, couldn’t play direct. Keeping our composure has always been a key for us and getting those quick goals.”

Old Forge coach John Mucciolo knew his team faced a daunting task in trying to rally in the second half.

“They’re good in the midfield and they’re good up top with their possession. Not necessarily having to attack, but they hold onto the ball,” Mucciolo said. “When you’re trying to make a comeback against that team, you have to defend and build up from the back. It’s difficult.

“I thought we played an excellent second half. We came out flat, the ball bounced the wrong way a few times. But credit to them. They outplayed us for a large portion of the game and deserve to go on.”

The Blue Devils (12-7-1) did get one goal back in the second half. William Garcia was taken down in the box and scored on a penalty kick at 55:55. However, they didn’t mount much of a threat after that.

“We got a little too relaxed,” Josh Tigue said. “That was kind of a wakeup call to start defending and playing harder.”

Added Mucciolo: “Three against a good team in this sport is pretty insurmountable. I told them at half I didn’t mind the way they were playing. We had to be a little cleaner with our passing and had to get one back in the first 10 minutes. The kids didn’t quit, which I’m really happy about. They came out much more aggressive in the second half. I didn’t know if they were going to go into a shell and put up the white flag, but they didn’t. They’re great competitors.”

MacDonald is confident the Eagles will be ready for the district final against Wyoming Seminary.

“I’ve said this since Day 1. We play every game as if it’s the championship game,” MacDonald said. “We don’t take anybody lightly, we don’t underestimate anybody. I don’t care who shows up at this field, we’re going to take them on and do it to the best of our ability. We’re not afraid of anybody.”

First: Norton (MTV), 14:05. Millard (MTV), 26:17. Josh Tigue (MTV), 29:12; Second: Garcia (OF), penalty kick, 55:55; Shots-corners: OF 5-3, MTV 14-7; Saves: Askew (OF) 5, Beach (MTV) 5; Records: OF 12-7-1, MTV 16-2-1.

Wyoming Seminary 4, Holy Cross 1: At Wyoming Seminary, Owen Stretanski and Artur Zelenko each scored two goals, while Zelenko had two assists to lead the Blue Knights to the win in the District 2 Class 1A semifinals.

Wyoming Seminary will play at top seed Mountain View on Friday at 3:30 p.m. for the district title.

Adam Badyrka scored for Holy Cross.

First: Badyrka (HC) from Prislupski, 32:33. Stretanski (WS) from Zelenko, 17:34; Second: Stretanski (WS) from Zelenko, 33:02. Zelenko (WS) from Jolin, 11:22. Zelenko (WS) from Rolland, 7:47; Shots-corners: WS 26-6, HC 3-1; Saves: Richart (WS) 1, McCoy (HC) 18; Records: HC 14-6, WS 14-5.

Class 2A

At Lake-Lehman, Aiden Gallagher, Hunter Palka and Andrew Morris each scored two goals in Lake-Lehman’s 8-0 win over Dunmore in the District 2 Class 2A semifinals.

The top-seeded Black Knights will host Tunkhannock on Thursday at 6 p.m. for the district title. The No. 3 Tigers advanced with a 4-3 overtime victory over No. 2 Riverside.

Kolby Shook and Landon James also scored for the Black Knights. Palka had two assists, while Morris and Gallagher each had one.

First: Shook (LL) from Palka, 38:57. Palka (LL) from Morris, 32:11. Gallagher (LL) unassisted, 27:38. Gallagher (LL) unassisted, 9:18. Morris (LL) unassisted, 5:47; Second: James (LL) from Palka, 11:12. Palka (LL) from Gallagher, 6:50. Morris (LL) unassisted, 4:00; Shots-corners: DUN 8-2, LL 22-10; Saves: O’Malley (DUN) 6, Chapple (LL) 3; Records: DUN 15-5, L 19-1.