High school boys soccer: Manti, Ogden each shut out opponents to advance to 3A championship game
Here’s a recap of the 3A boys soccer state tournament semifinals on Thursday at Zions Bank Stadium, with Manti and Ogden advancing to the final.
Manti 3, Juab 0
It’s been a historic season for the Manti Templars, who stand with Wasatch as the only teams in the state without a loss this season. Manti has done so while only giving up four total goals while scoring 64 of their own.
The Templars earned a chance to cap off their season with a 3A championship as they won convincingly over the Juab Wasps 3-0 in the state semifinals on Thursday.
“This group has been together for seven years and I actually started coaching them on a club team,” said Manti head coach Jake Dettinger. “They just have a lot of chemistry together and they have a lot of heart.
“These boys are winners, they want to win every time they step on the field, they want to give everything they have, and it starts at the top with team defense. We press hard with our forwards all the way back and that’s why we haven’t given up many goals this year.”
It took only 90 seconds for Manti to get a leg up on Juab, with Corbin Henry chipping in a ball over the Wasps’ keeper for an early 1-0 lead.
“I somehow placed it in the back of the net, and I was pretty proud of myself. My teammates really helped me get open,” said Henry. “We’re just a family. We all love each other, we’re all friends, we all play to the best of our abilities and we play as a team.”
Manti didn’t score another goal in the first half, but its stifling defense kept Juab scoreless, resulting in the Templars’ 14th shutout of the season.
The Templars struck again in the 63rd minute with a goal from Luke Summers, and they capped off the 3-0 win with a goal in the 74th minute on a header from Kyle Steinfeldt.
The first and only time Manti has won a boys soccer state championship was in 2012, but it will fight for its second ever state title on Saturday at America First Field.
“We’re definitely feeling excited,” said Dettinger. “We’ve been working towards this for a long time and we feel like the time is now. We put in the time and work this offseason to have this opportunity and we’re excited to have it.
“It’s been a great ride and this is a great group of guys and I really enjoy coaching them.”
Ogden 1, Morgan 0
A year ago, the Morgan Trojans narrowly knocked off the Ogden Tigers in a 6-5 shootout in the 3A semifinals. Then, in their opening game of region play, the Trojans won 3-2 in overtime.
After that loss, Ogden knew it had to do something different and the Tigers got consecutive wins over Morgan, including a 1-0 win in Thursday’s 3A semifinal.
“Last year Morgan played better than us and it left a bitter taste in our mouth,” said Ogden’s Adam Jenks. “We didn’t want that to happen again. They beat us again in region and we knew we had to wake up and couldn’t let it happen again. We made a statement win and we knew we had to come in and do it again.”
Ogden struggled to find offensive openings early in the semifinal, but Gerardo Esquievel created a chance for the Tigers with a cross to Jenks, who placed it in the back of the net for the goal.
“(Esquievel) put the ball down the sideline and made a great play. I was set up and made a good finish, but it was a team goal,” Jenks said. “That’s what we do, we play team soccer, and we win as a team.”
Ogden went into the half with a 1-0 lead, and Morgan was desperate to find an equalizer in the second half.
Morgan pressed throughout the second half and had a few good looks that were promptly shut down by the Tigers’ defense.
“My boys knew the bittersweet taste and they wanted to make sure that didn’t happen again,” said Ogden head coach Todd Scott. “They knew Morgan is a very good team. We knew they were going to come in with the high press. We were just resilient, and everyone did their jobs.”
The Tigers held Morgan scoreless and recorded their 10th shutout of the season to advance to the 3A championship game against Manti.
“I told my boys, ‘Way to be resilient, way to finish the game, but the job isn’t over yet.’ I’m so proud of my boys for getting it done today,” said Scott.
Ogden hasn’t taken home a boys soccer state championship since 2005, and to do so it will have to knock off undefeated Manti.
“We will play our game, we know what’s at stake, and our boys know our job isn’t done yet,” Scott said.
