The state titles continue to roll into the metro area as a pair of soccer teams claimed championships at the WorldWide Soccer Park while two football teams clicked their tickets to the state championship games this coming weekend. Plus, it is the annual Turkey Day Game between Webster Groves and Kirkwood on Thursday at Moss Field.
Time for a holiday week edition of the Monday Morning Wrap-Up!
We start on the football field as CBC scored 20 unanswered points in the third quarter en route to a 46-21 victory over Liberty North to move on to the state title contest Saturday at Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo. After the Eagles scored to take a 7-0 lead, the Cadets got on the scoreboard as Jeremiah McClellan scored from four yards out to cut the deficit to 7-6. Liberty North added to the lead in the second, but CBC answered as Jeremiyah Love raced 75 yards to the end zone to cut the Eagles lead to 14-12 at the half.
The Cadets exploded in the third as the rushing attack gained control of the game as McClellan, Love, and Dylan Van all found the end zone on the ground to put CBC on top 32-14. Ralph Dixon put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter as he scored from 38 yards out to extend the lead to 39-14. After a Liberty North score, Love scored his third touchdown of the day on a nine-yard run to put the Cadets into the title game for the second straight season. Love finished the game with 172 yards on the ground while Van added 80 yards rushing in the win.
CBC will take on Lee’s Summit North, who defeated De Smet Friday evening, Saturday at 4 p.m. in Columbia. The Cadets are looking to win their fifth state title in the past eight years.
Over on the Illinois side, East St. Louis rebounded in the second half after trailing Lemont 14-6 through two quarters as the Flyers outscored Lemont 26-15 in the final 24 minutes of the contest to advance to the IHSA Class 6A championship game with a 32-29 victory Saturday afternoon. The Flyers used a punishing rushing attack that saw TaRyan Martin carry the ball 40 times for 349 yards and four scores to aid East St. Louis in advancing to the title game against Crystal Lake Saturday afternoon starting at 1 p.m. at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Ill. The game against Crystal Lake is a rematch of the Class 6A championship game two years ago, which saw the Flyers win 43-21.
On the pitch at the WorldWide Soccer Park this past weekend, Borgia claimed their first boys’ soccer title in school history while Webster Groves claimed their third soccer championship.
The Knights needed a goal in the 78th minute to break a scoreless tie and grab the title with a 1-0 win over Summit Christian Academy. After winning the semifinal over Bishop DuBourg Friday with a goal in the last two minutes, Borgia once again used heroics in the later stages of the game to earn the win. It was a defensive battle between the two teams for the first 77 minutes until Adam Rickman took a rebound off a defender and slotted a shot into the lower left corner of the goal to put the Knights on top 1-0. Justin Mort earned the clean sheet for Borgia with six saves in the contest.
Webster Groves needed to work overtime to win their third state title as the Statesmen defeated Kansas City East 3-2 in a match that needed penalty kicks to decide the winner. The Bears took an early lead in the 26th minute and held on to the advantage after the first 40 minutes. Webster Groves evened the match in the 53rd minute as Jonas Oestrelie fired a shot from 25-yards out into the left side of the goal to tie the game at 1-1. The Statesmen took the lead in the 74th minute as Oliver Doyle converted a penalty kick after an East foul in the box to make the score 2-1. The Bears answered two minutes later with a shot that bounced in off the post to put the score at 2-2. The two teams played on even terms for the remainder of regulation and over the two overtime periods. In the penalty kick phase of the match, Drew Rekart, who entered the game late in regulation, make a pair of stops on the first two East shots while Doyle, Charles Heard, and Oesterlie all converted their kicks. After East found the net with their third attempt, Jamieson Peplow sent the Statesmen home with the title after he nailed his attempt to give Webster Groves a 4-1 victory in kicks.
In other action at the Soccer Park, Orchard Farm saw their season come to an end in the Class 2 title match as the Eagles fell to Marshall 2-1 as the Owls won in penalty kicks 4-3 while CBC dropped the Class 4 championship match to Rockhurst 1-0 after the Hawklets scored a goal late in the contest to claim the title.
Before the state semifinals take place in the other classes on the football field, the annual Turkey Day game between Webster Groves and Kirkwood will take place at Moss Field on Thanksgiving Day starting at noon. This will be the last game played on the grass at Moss field as the school district saw a bond issue pass earlier this year that will help in renovating the legendary stadium with a new field, stands, and press box. The Pioneers have won the Frisco Bell for the past eight years and will look to keep the prized bell at their school.
The 2022-23 basketball season started up over the weekend and many annual early-season tournaments dot the schedule this week.
Jim Powers has been covering prep sports in the St. Louis area for 15+ years and a part of the Missouri State High School Activities Association Championship Broadcasts for the past 11 years. Powers is also a part of the Fox 2 Verlo Mattress Prep Zone Friday nights at 10:10 during the football and basketball seasons. If you have a prep sports story, please contact Jim at japowers2421@yahoo.com. Follow Jim at @hssportscaravan
