Jeremy Sieverts picked a good time to score his first goal of the PLL Championship Series.

Sieverts, a 33-year-old midfielder who had only taken two shots all tournament, swept from left to right along the inside of the arc and stuck a high bouncer in the top-left corner to beat Redwoods goalie Tim Troutner with 7:56 left in overtime to lift Whipsnakes to a 13-12 victory and a spot in Sunday’s final at Zions Bank Stadium in Herriman, Utah.

JEREMY SIEVERTS IN OT @PLLWhipsnakes survive, advance to @PremierLacrosse championship game with a 13-12 win over Redwoods. It’ll be Chaos-Whips for the PLL Championship Series Cup on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/x2h5xBufsR

— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) August 7, 2020

“Just got a step and pulled it hard,” a winded Sieverts said on NBC Sports shortly after the game ended at around 1:30 a.m. Eastern time.

The top-seeded Whipsnakes will play the seventh-seeded Chaos in the title game Sunday at 12:30 p.m. Eastern on NBC.

Sieverts is no stranger to big spots, having starred for several seasons with Major League Lacrosse’s Denver Outlaws and winning titles in 2014 and 2017. All told, he has been a part of four pro lacrosse championship teams. But when you think of the Whipsnakes cadre of former Maryland lacrosse stars who might have the ball in their stick on the final possession, Sieverts likely is not the first player to come to mind.

This wasn’t an ordinary game for the Whips, however. Top scorers Matt Rambo, the hero in last year’s OT win over Redwoods in the championship game, and Zed Williams were shut out by Garrett Epple and Finn Sullivan, respectively. And after racing to an 8-2 lead, the team that had a plus-24 goal differential while cruising to a 4-0 mark and the top seed in group play kind of fell apart.

If it were not for a pair of long 2-point goals by long-stick midfielder Michael Ehrhardt and a strong finish by faceoff specialist Joe Nardella (18-for-26), the Whipsnakes might have coughed up the lead entirely.

As it was, they never trailed. But after Brad Smith (five assists) and Jay Carlson (four goals) had the Whips humming early, the Redwoods buckled down on defense. The Whipsnakes were scoreless for more than 20 minutes before Sieverts delivered the OT winner.

Redwoods, whose comeback was reminiscent of when they rallied from down seven against the Whipsnakes in the 2019 PLL final, rode the hot hands of Matt Kavanagh (four goals, one assist) and Ryder Garnsey (two goals, two assists). The two attackmen were also relentless in the ride, creating extra possessions in the second half.

Garnsey scored the only goal of the fourth quarter, coming off a screen around the right and stuffing a backhanded bouncer to tie the game at 12 with 2:54 remaining. Brendan Gleason nearly won it for the Woods in regulation, but hit the left pipe off an invert dodge from behind.

In overtime, the Whipsnakes and Redwoods each stalled out on their first possession, with the defenses forcing shot-clock violations. Epple came up with an interception on one end, but then Brent Adams could not capitalize when he tried to dunk the ball while jumping from behind the net. Sieverts ended it on the Whipsnakes’ third try.