COVID-19 challenges prove no problem for NC high school soccer team in state final
Three days before his teams’ state soccer playoff quarterfinal match, Carmel Christian coach Jeff Dresser learned that four senior players would not be able to play.
The day before that quarterfinal match, three more players were ruled out -- all due to COVID-19 contact tracing. Carmel Christian won without those seven players.
Before Saturday’s state championship game against Rabun Gap, Carmel Christian was still down six players due to contract tracing.
“We called up some junior varsity players, and we went out there and played,” Dresser said Saturday afternoon, shortly after his still-depleted roster blanked top seed Rabun Gap School 2-0 for the independent schools’ N.C. 4A title.
“When we needed someone to step up, they did,” he added. “Our defense was great, we had great goalkeeping, and our offense did what it had to do.”
Dresser coached the Cougars (14-1) to their first soccer state championship. Carmel Christian lost 1-0 to Coastal Christian in the 2019 state title.
Defense was the key Saturday. Carmel Christian’s back line and senior goalkeeper K.J. Sparks shut down the explosive Rabun Gap attack. When the Eagles’ Sebastian Zavala touched the ball, there usually were two or three Cougar defenders to greet him.
Zavala, who scored a team-high 22 goals this season and had a goal in each of the two regular-season Rabun Gap-Carmel Christian matches, only had one shot on goal Saturday.
After a tightly-played scoreless first half, play got more dynamic in the final 40 minutes.
The visiting Eagles (13-3) swarmed the Carmel Christian goal about 10 minutes into the half. They barely missed connecting twice on headers, before the Cougars took control with about 29 minutes left. They broke through with 27:57 left, when senior Jayce Shirley, about 15 yards right of the goal, lofted a pass to Noah Behrmann, who headed it into the goal.
Carmel Christian kept up the pressure, earning three corner kicks over the next 10 minutes and finally scoring with 12:30 left, when Ty Morgan found himself in control of the ball, about 5 yards in front of the goal. He quickly booted the ball into the left side of the net, setting off a big celebration on the Cougar bench.
“When you consider everything that’s happened this season, and especially in the playoffs, this is such a gratifying victory,” Dresser said. “It feels great.”
THREE WHO MATTERED
Jayce Shirley, Carmel Christian: A senior defender, Shirley got an assist on the Cougars’ first goal and was part of a defense that shut down the high-scoring Eagles.
K.J. Sparks, Carmel Christian: The Cougars’ senior goalkeeper earned the clean sheet, making six saves.
Jacobo Saenz, Rabun Gap School: The Eagles’ No. 2 scorer during the regular season, Saenz had a pair of second-half shots that sent Sparks scrambling for saves.
WORTH MENTIONING
▪ Carmel Christian had more scoring chances, including an 8-2 advantage on corner kicks. Rabun Gap was called for eight fouls, Carmel Christian for seven.
▪ Soccer runs deep in the family of Cougars’ coach Jeff Dresser. His father, Paul, coached nearly 40 years in the Flint, Mich., area. And two of Jeff Dresser’s sons, Jackson and Dylan, were members of this year’s team.
▪ The teams split their regular-season matches this fall. Rabun Gap won 1-0 on Sept. 18, and Carmel Christian prevailed 3-2 in overtime a week later.
▪ Both teams were state runners-up a year ago. Rabun Gap lost 3-0 in the 4A finals to High Point Wesleyan. Carmel Christian fell 1-0 to Coastal Christian in the 3A finals, then moved up to 4A this season.
They said it
“I was a ball boy for the teams my dad coached. Soccer has always been a big part of our family.” -- Carmel Christian coach Jeff Dresser.
Steve Lyttle on Twitter: @slyttle
This story was originally published November 6, 2020 at 2:35 PM.
