The Tiger Soccer team is back in the final four after defeating the Bowling Green Purples this past Saturday in the Pit 1-0.
After defeating Butler in the first round of the State Tournament last week thanks to Goals from Senior Marco Quintero and Junior Trey White, the Tigers set up a big match against the Purples of Bowling Green in the infamous Pit. The Pit is the name of the stadium that the Purples play at and is known for being notoriously difficult to play at.
The lone goal was scored by Junior Brady Yousseffi, one of the players injured in the aftermath of the railing collapse when beating rival Trinity at Waggener.
“It felt amazing just to be back out there with the guys,” Youssefi said. “That moment at Waggener really shook me up and I didn’t know how long it would take to get back. But stepping on that field reminded me not to take any minute of the game for granted.”
The Purples came into this matchup as the hottest team in the state with 14 straight wins. This was the first time the Tigers have played Bowling Green since the semifinals of the 2022 State Tournament, the Tigers prevailed and defeated the Purples 2-1 in overtime to advance to the State Championship.
This time was no different, Youssefi opened the scoring in the first half after coming off the bench and scoring with his first few minutes on the field. The shot came from a pass off the right foot of Tagan “Tag” Haunert.
“The team played well,” Haunert said. “At first we were a bit shaky and nervous because it was a quarterfinal matchup against a very win heavy team, but when we got in our groove we were moving the ball around pretty good.”
The Tigers did not allow one shot on goal for the entirety of the game and maintained possession to win 1-0 and move on to the State Semifinals.
“Our main focus has to be Bryan Station and how we can defeat them, granting us a spot in the championship,” Haunert said. “We have to stay focused on one game at a time.”
This has been an emotional postseason run to say the least. The Tigers have leaned on each other on and off the pitch.
“This team has shown a lot of heart,” Youssefi said. “Everyone stepped up when they had to, whether it was a starter or someone coming off the bench. We’ve built a real brotherhood and that’s what has carried us through this year.”
The Tigers continue to embrace their brotherhood and take on the Defenders at Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School in Lexington. With a Win, the Tigers can punch their ticket to the state championship and continue their journey towards lifting the trophy for the 20th time.
