FAIRFIELD — For the first 60 minutes of Monday night’s FCIAC semifinal match at Fairfield Ludlowe High, the Staples boys soccer team was in command. 

Avery Mueller’s goal staked the first-seeded Wreckers to a 1-0 edge over No. 4 Stamford.

But the Knights stunned Staples with a pair of goals in the final 7:21 to go up 2-1.

The Wreckers fought back. Only a brilliant save by Stamford keeper Christian Vitti, on a rocket by Mueller with five seconds to go, preserved the upset win.

The Knights move on to the FCIAC final, Thursday at 7 p.m. at Norwalk High. They play Trumbull, the No. 3 seed, who edged No. 2 Greenwich 5-4 in a wild contest.

Staples now awaits the state “LL” (extra large schools) tournament. Seedings are announced Friday. The first match for the Wreckers — who will have the top spot — is Tuesday, Nov. 7, at home (time TBD).

The first time Staples and Stamford met this year — in the fourth match of the regular season — the Knights came from behind to tie, 1-1. It was the first goal the Wreckers surrendered all season.

That draw was one of the few blemishes on Staples’ season. They roared through the schedule with a 12-1-3 mark, then blitzed Fairfield Warde 4-1 last Friday in the first round of the FCIAC tournament.

Last night, there had to be a winner.

For much of the first half, and part of the second, the No. 1-ranked Westporters were in control. In the 27th minute Sam Rossoni’s blast was parried away by Vitti.

Zach Gorin took the ensuing inswinging corner. Mueller and Santi Alfageme leapt high, in the box. Mueller got there first, and headed in. Vitti grabbed the ball, but only after it was inches over the line.

The lead galvanized the blue-and-whites. They won more than their share of 50/50 balls, with hard, well-timed tackles. They played quickly and crisply, possessing smartly while finding seams and feet while keeping the Stamford off balance.

Gorin and Adam Syah controlled the center of the field. Behind them, defenders Alfageme, Cormac Mulvey, Zach Beebe and Gabe Hellman (replacing the injured Jack Schwartz) frustrated the fleet Knight forwards.

Vitti opened the second half by saving Elliot Galin’s corner kick. As the game got faster and more physical, Stamford clawed their way back into contention. They squandered a close-in free kick, shot wide by inches, missed in a goal line scramble, then could not get another shot off in a scrum. But now they played with confidence.

With 7:26 to go, their persistence paid off. A long free kick was dropped, then banged in from close range. As they did last month, Stamford found the equalizer.

They continued to push forward, in the increasingly physical match. Nick Sikorski saved nicely. With 3 minutes left, Rossoni had a great shot. Once again, Vitti saved.

Suddenly, the Knights played a long ball out of the back. A 50-yard run through two split defenders was capped with an authoritative finish. Just 1:21 was left on the clock.

But Staples was not about to give up. Rossoni laced a great cross through the box, but no one was there.

The Wreckers got the ball back, and surged forward one last time. With 5 seconds on the clock, Mueller fired a dead-on rocket.

Against nearly any other keeper, it would have been one of the most dramatic goals in Staples’ history. But Vitti flew parallel to the ground, punching it away for his best save of the day.

It was a bitter loss — only the second of the season — for Staples. But there is still one trophy, an even bigger one, ahead: the LL state championship.