UIL state soccer Class 6A semifinals: Katy Seven Lakes defeats Duncanville to advance
For the first time in over 37 years, the Duncanville boys soccer program made an appearance at the UIL state tournament.
The Panthers, however, were unsuccessful in their quest to win a state championship for the first time since the 1986 season. Katy Seven Lakes defeated Duncanville 2-0 at Birkelbach Field to advance to the Class 6A state championship at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday.
“Duncanville is extremely physical and aggressive,” Seven Lakes head coach Jimmy Krueger said. “It took a little bit of an adjustment with the early contesting of any sort of 50-50 ball. But in the second half, they cam out and matched that intensity. And then everything else took care of itself.”
The Spartans will face Lewisville Flower Mound (23-2-2) in the championship. If Seven Lakes is victorious, the program will win back-to-back championships.
Seven Lakes (24-1-2) got its first goal four minutes into the second half when Noa Stasic recieved a pass from Aidan Morrison deep in Panther territory. He collected himself and fired a successful shot from 25 yards out.
Kruegar said he celebrated a bit before the shot because he knew his team was in a solid position to score.
“When (Morrison) gets a hold of the ball, good things happen,” Kruegar said. “He was able to get out wide and connect with Noa Stasic.”
The Spartans got an insurance goal from Eduardo Davalillo, who finished a solid pass from Kortay Koc.
Kruegar said Davalillo is a big body with a great work ethic who tends to capitalize on opportunities in front of the goal. He added his team made a good play getting the ball across the box.
The Duncanville Panthers, who had seven shots on goal in the game, failed to respond.
Although Duncanville’s offense couldn’t get on the scoreboard, they had three solid chances in the match.
First, forward Eduardo Alaniz put a rocket of a shot on goal with just over 10 minutes to go in the half. Seven Lakes goalkeeper Benjamin Aviles made a spectacular save, getting a hand on the ball and redirected it into the post.
A few minutes later, Duncanville forward Mouhamed Gueye crossed a ball towards the goal and Aviles made the save. The ball rebounded off him to Fabricio Martinez, who took a point blank shot that was saved by Aviles.
With five minutes remaining, Alaniz found himself tight in front of the goal with the ball rolling his way. He put up an immediate shot, but Aviles, once again, was there to make the save and secure the shutout.
Kruegar said Aviles has been “absolutely sensational” and that his play gives the entire team confidence.
“So, he’s not just an All-American on paper,” Kruegar. “He’s truly a gifted goalie and he can get to any ball. He’s been big for us these past two years. “
Flower Mound topples Vandegrift, advances to face Seven Lakes
In the final state soccer semfinal, the Jaguars got the upper hand in their second appearance in the state tournament.
Flower Mound defeated Vandegrift 2-0 at Birkelbach Field on Friday, advancing to the Class 6A state title game at 6:30 on Saturday. The Jaguars will face Katy Seven Lakes.
“We competed well,” Flower Mound head coach David Doyle said. “They’re a good team. They’ve got some pretty good individuals. The goal was to play and not let them beat us. Other than the last minute, they never got any clear cut chances on goal.”
Flower Mound’s previous and only state championship win was in 2019, the year the program first made the state tournament. What’s it going to take to secure another state championship on Saturday?
Doyle, with a smile, said his team would need to score more goals than Seven Lakes.
“Recovery is important,” Doyle said. “Being prepared. We watched their game today. They’ve got really good players. Tonight, we’ll eat, recover and we’ll have a team meeting tomorrow morning.”
Flower Mound took an early lead with a goal from Jack White 10 minutes into the contest. He got to the loose ball and got a right footed shot off that flew past the outstretched hands of Charlie Reed, Vandegirft’s goalie.
Vandegrift was greatly limited by the Jaguar’s defense and managed to put two shots on goal. Both were saved by Flower Mound goalie Morgan English.
A few minutes into the second half, the Jaguars got some insurance. Alex Tabbah was near the goal when a 50-50 ball rolled into the box, and Reed left his post at the goal to defend but overran the play; Tabbah got the easy goal.
Flower Mound proceeded to play ultra defensive soccer, holding the lead for the rest of the contest.
This story was originally published April 12, 2024 at 7:27 PM.
.jpg)