High School Boys Soccer: Gulf Breeze fends off furious rally, stays unbeaten with win at Tate

Scoreless through the first 80 minutes, Gulf Breeze and Tate needed overtime to decide who would be the District 1-6A champion one season ago.

The two teams met for the first time since that showdown on Monday in a match that was settled during regulation. And if their most recent clash is any indication, a future postseason meeting will certainly be worth the price of admission.

The squads combined for eight goals highlighted by an action-packed flurry in the match’s final 20 minutes.

Playing on their back foot for a portion of that stretch, the Dolphins saw a two-score advantage evaporate, only to gain a late lead and add some cushion in a matter of seconds. They emerged with a 5-3 victory from a chilly night from the Ashton Brosnaham Soccer Complex.

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“The guys battled through some interesting situations tonight,” Gulf Breeze head coach Austin King said. “We felt kind of comfortable going up 3-1. We thought a lot of the things we were doing were working, and then Tate came back and scored and tied it up. I’m just happy that we persevered and kept going because I was afraid we were going to fold.”

“It feels amazing. We not might not have played the best as a team, but we did play good in the end and ended up with a good result,” said senior forward Carson Dahlem, who knocked in the night’s first goal in the 24th minute.

Even with a man advantage for the entirety of the second half, the Dolphins’ grasp of the game started to slip in the 63rd minute when a defensive misplay led to a breakaway. Aggies senior forward Jackson Clarke nimbly sidestepped Gulf Breeze senior goalkeeper Connor Nash for a tap-in score that closed the gap to 3-2. Three minutes later, the home team on the scoreboard collected an equalizer.

On the receiving end of a give-and-go, Tate junior Aaron Blackburn was taken down inside the 18-yard box, resulting in a penalty kick. From there, Clarke beat Nash with a blast to the bottom-right corner to tie the match at 3-3. It was Clarke’s second penalty make and third overall goal of the evening.

However, he wouldn’t be the only player on the field to finish with a hat trick.

The Dolphins produced a corner kick in the 70th minute, with senior midfielder Kyle Cosenza floating a high delivery toward the back post. Fellow senior Lucas Isakson established position amid traffic in front and put in a header for the game-winning score.

“I’ve had one or two headers this year and Kyle put it on the money. I just had to head it straight into the goal,” said Isakson, who has scored at least once in every match this season.

The senior striker wasn’t done as he scored a mere 20 seconds later.

Following an Aggies turnover, Isakson beat senior goalkeeper Ward O’Brien after being set up by junior midfielder C.J. Cruit to put the match on ice and complete his first career hat trick.

“C.J. had it in the corner and he cut some dude up. He just found me sitting in the penalty spot, and I just finished it and put it in the bottom corner,” Isakson recalled.

While the ending didn’t go exactly as smoothly as the team had hoped, Gulf Breeze can enjoy at least a few more sleeps with the following designation: the area’s last unbeaten team.

The Dolphins now boast an 8-0-1 record, as no other local team has a goose egg in the loss column.

“That zero starts to weigh heavily on some of these kids, particularly when we play local teams. But I’m happy for the boys,” King said.

Here are three takeaways from Monday night’s match.

Aggies eye continued progress

It was just the second defeat for a Tate squad now coached by Mason Clarke, who came over from West Florida Tech.

Despite ripping off a 5-0 start to the 2023-24 campaign, the Aggies remain a work in progress as the group is trying to smooth over the loss of eight starters from a year ago. And in their first real test, they had their struggles out of the gate. The Dolphins controlled possession and had the brunt of the scoring chances, particularly until the second water break.

“I thought we didn’t play great in the first half,” Mason Clarke said. “We were a little tentative and I think the moment was a little big for some of us.

“We have a group of transfers and returning players that are learning to play together. And (Gulf Breeze) is the highest-level team that we played. I think we need to grow in confidence that we can keep the ball and we can compete for the possession. I think we’ll learn from that, we made some good progress with that already, and as the season rolls along, we’ll get better and better from there.”

The Dolphins were excellent at taking away passing lanes and retreating back to avoid odd numbers on counter-attacks. Meanwhile, competing on the biggest and widest field in the area played right into their hands as they utilized their speed and pace up to pick the ball in behind against a Tate backline that played up.

Gulf Breeze enjoyed a 4-0 margin in corner kicks and many more opportunities from set pieces or in the flow of the game in the first half. But the team did not cash in on enough of those chances if you ask the head coach.

“If you don’t put the ball in the back of the net, you’re not really in control,” King said. “It’s kind of like in football, where if you dominate between the 20’s (20-yard lines) and you don’t punch it in the end zone, it’s going to one day come back and bite you.”

Gulf Breeze knows it is getting everyone’s best shot

The run to 8-0-1 hasn’t been an easy one for the Dolphins.

For as many blowouts as it has produced, Gulf Breeze has played a few close matches similar to its victory on Monday.

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In their season opener on Nov. 7 at Bay, the Dolphins relinquished a game-tying goal with less than 10 minutes remaining. But they escaped with a 3-2 win thanks to a score at the buzzer from junior defender Noah Flint. Their next contest two days later at Niceville was more of the same as they clung to a one-goal cushion before an injury late led to the Eagles equalizing and finishing with a 3-3 draw.

“The guys have been in kind of tight games and tight situations,” King said. “I don't know if it's true, but I feel like everybody we play brings their best game against us. So we always anticipate battles and that's definitely what we got here tonight.”

Gulf Breeze plays Niceville at 7 p.m. Friday from Dolphin Stadium.

Round two?

Isakson’s first goal of the night was a splendid individual effort as he shielded off multiple defenders before blasting in a rocket from the edge of the box in the 47th minute.

As soon as he saw the ball reach the back of the net, the senior sprinted to the far corner, slid on his knees towards the corner flag with his teammates in tow before celebrating with a small dance.

Those actions were enough to draw a warning from the officials, but the senior striker repeated his sprint to the corner following his second and third goals, albeit with less flare. After the last occasion, Isakson received a yellow card.

Was it worth it?

“No. I put myself first instead of thinking about the team. I got a card and got sent off for a second,” he said.

Maturity is part of the growth the Dolphins hope to experience on the road to the postseason.

King notes he’d like to see an improved fitness level from his players after looking sluggish late against the Aggies. But his biggest key for the stretch run is a tactical buy-in for a group that, like Tate, has dealt with several changes.

Gone are 12 graduating seniors from last year’s team that won 19 of 23 matches. Additionally, Gulf Breeze is without the services of Will Woodward. The star junior forward suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in the fall.

Although still plenty talented, the Dolphins are relying on players, either transfers or guys with an increased role, who haven't had tons of time in the system.“I think it’s about just firming up our understanding of what it is that we're looking for and how our system at Gulf Breeze works,” King remarked. “I think we've got the players, it's just a matter of execution.”

With the hopes and expectations of a Final Four run, the Dolphins are certainly the favorite to capture the district crown. They are in search of their third consecutive district title. The question is can Tate take the steps within the regular season to become a roadblock once that time of the season arrives?

“That’s the goal. We’re building, we are working to get there,” Mason Clarke said. “Our hope is that in the end, we’re there and we give them a little better game in the first 60 minutes. If we compete for the full 80 like we did in the last 30, I think we’ll be OK.”

Tate (6-2) looks to rebound at 2 p.m. Saturday at home against Crestview.

Patrick Bernadeau is a sports reporter for the Pensacola News Journal. He can be reached at (772) 985-9692, on X at @PatBernadeau or via email at pbernadeau@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Boys Soccer: Undefeated Gulf Breeze takes down Tate in furious finish