Boys soccer regional finals: Trimble Tech advances to state; Keller, Castleberry lose

FW Trimble Tech 3, Grapevine 2

Julian Hernandez scored a pair of goals and the Bulldogs avenged last season’s loss to the Mustangs in the Class 5A Region 1 final on Saturday at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls.

Grapevine knocked out Tech 3-1 in last year’s regional quarterfinal round.

Tech improves to 26-3-1 and advances to the state tournament for the first time in program history. The Bulldogs will play a 5A state semifinal game against defending champ Frisco Wakeland (22-4-1) at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday at Birkelbach Field in Georgetown.

“The boys did what I asked and we played our game. When we play our game, no one is going to beat us,” Tech coach James Williams said. “We’re not done. We still have work to do. We’re not stopping until we have to.”

Tech’s 26 wins are the most of any boys soccer team at the state tournament.

Wakeland has reached the state championship game in five straight postseasons.

Grapevine suffered its first loss and ends the year at 27-1-2 with the program’s deepest playoff run since 1997.

The Mustangs started fast with a 1-0 lead off a free kick in the 6th minute, but Tech scored the equalizer six minutes later. Hernandez got a beautiful pass in the box and slid the ball past the goalkeeper with a man on his shoulder.

“Julian just has a knack for scoring,” Williams said.

Tech took the lead 2-1 in the 27th minute on Hernandez’s second goal. Again, he beat the Grapevine goalkeeper one-on-one inside the box. Tech grew the lead to 3-1 when Ivan Mulgado beat two defenders and finished off a set piece past the keeper.

“We had a good feeling at that point, but I knew Grapevine could come back so we played a tough second half,” Williams said. “We didn’t change up the game plan much, we kept going at them.”

Grapevine cut the lead to 3-2 with a goal in the 63rd minute.

The Bulldogs are the second team from FWISD to clinch a state berth in as many years.

Diamond Hill-Jarvis made the 4A state final last season, but the Eagles state berth was a first for the district in boys or girls soccer history.

Plano 2, Keller 1 OT

Christian Cifuentes’ goal in the 89th minute pushed the Plano Wildcats past the Keller Indians in the Class 6A Region 1 final on Saturday at McKinney ISD Stadium.

Plano reaches the UIL state tournament for the first time since 2009. The Wildcats will play a semifinal game at 7:30 p.m. on Friday against Katy Seven Lakes at Birkelbach Field.

Tied up at 1-1 after regulation, Plano scored with just under two minutes left in the first overtime.

After Keller goalkeeper Aidan Tidwell punched it out, the Indians had a hard time clearing it and after a mad scramble, Cifuentes booted it about five yards from the goal to give Plano the 2-1 lead.

Keller had a chance to take a 2-1 lead in the 84th minute when Plano was called for a foul in the box with Cade Whitmire lining up the penalty kick.

But his attempt was stopped by Plano goalie Henry Huffstetler. Keller also had a corner and throw in during the next minute, but Plano stopped or cleared both tries.

After going scoreless through the first 50-plus minutes, Keller grabbed a 1-0 lead on a Matthew Sanchez free kick that was finished off by Maddox Mallery in the 54th minute.

Plano tied it at 1-1 in the 64th minute when Nolan Giles converted a penalty kick. Sanchez booted a far free kick for Keller with seconds expiring, but Huffstetler punched it over the top cross bar to send it to overtime.

Keller ends the season at 23-3 and its deepest playoff run in program history. It also finished as District 4-6A champion.

Stephenville 5, Castleberry 2

Stephenville scored three unanswered goals in the final 14 minutes as the Yellow Jackets earned their first trip to the state tournament with a win over the Lions in the Class 4A Region 1 final on Saturday at Northwest ISD Stadium.

Stephenville (22-2-1) will play Celina at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday in the state semifinals in Georgetown.

Castleberry spotted Stephenville two first half goals, but stormed back.

Dylan Cabrera’s shot from the left side for the Yellow Jackets glanced off the Castleberry keeper and trickled into the net for a 1-0 lead in the 9th minute. Zach Hallman was wide open after a nice cross and punched it in from eight yards out to give Stephenville a 2-0 lead in the 15th minute.

“We knew when we were up two nil that the job wasn’t done,” said Stephenville coach Justin Rhodes. “Paul (Smith) does a really good job with his team over there. We’ve played them three times and they got us the first two.

“We don’t lose a lot of games so that says a lot about him and his program and kids.”

Jesse Salas Jr. got things rolling for the Lions when he punched in a rebound off a free kick from just outside the keeper’s box to cut the lead to 2-1 in the 25th minute.

The equalizer came when Esteban Mercado gathered a loose ball in front of the Stephenville net and slipped it past the keeper in the 29th minute to knot the score.

“Our kids always play with energy, especially once we get one in,” said Castleberry coach Paul Smith, whose team advanced further than any boys soccer team in school history. “I think the extra 20 minutes last night hurt us a little bit. Their legs were a little fresher a little longer than ours and I think that had a huge influence on today’s game.”

Castleberry didn’t leave the stadium Friday night until well past 8 p.m. after beating San Elizario in penalty kicks.

It was a physical donnybrook from that point with Stephenville supplying most of the pressure. The Jackets out shot the Lions 10-2, seven on goal for Stephenville, in the second half until the 74th minute.

A non-call on what appeared to be a penalty on Stephenville in the box against Johan Castaneda in the 59th minute seemed to have an adverse affect on the Lions, coupled with playing the extra 20 minutes in the late game on Friday.

Seven minutes later Castleberry was called for a penalty in the box against Cabrera. Parker Plaxco converted the penalty kick to give Stephenville a 3-2 lead.

Just a minute later, Cabrera, a sophomore, took a rebounded shot and blasted it into the top right corner to give the Jackets a 4-2 lead.

“We’ve played this team twice before since coach Rhodes has been here in the last two years and we’ve lost both times,” said Plaxco, an Oral Roberts University commit. “It was a revenge game for part of it and being up two goals we think we’ve got it, but a two-goal lead is the most dangerous lead to have in soccer.”

Plaxco took advantage of a misplayed ball in the 80th minute to score his second goal.

“This group is special,” said Smith. “They’re the best to ever do it for Castleberry and I love each and every one of those guys, the seniors especially, but the future is still bright. I love this group and it’s been a pleasure to be their coach.”

This story was originally published April 9, 2022 at 6:54 PM.