On Valentine’s Day night, the Santa Fe (Alachua) boys soccer team finally got the match they wanted all season.
Unfortunately for the Raiders, it was a heartbreaking end to their season.
Senior striker James O’Neal scored two first-half goals as No. 1 seed Wolfson (Jacksonville) blanked No. 4 seed Santa Fe, 2-0, in an FHSAA Class 3A-Region 1 Semifinal in Jacksonville.
“This is a team that we’ve been looking forward to playing,” said Santa Fe coach Morgan Dall’Acqua. “We had them circled. We expected to see them ever since November. They’re just as good as they are on paper. They’ve got a good group and they’re really, really well coached.”
O’Neal’s first goal came just over eight minutes into the match. It proved to be the game-winner.
His second came in the 33rd minute with an off-balance shot from the top of the box following a deflection.
“They had success early against us and really played quickly into the counter space and took advantage of some stuff that we probably weren’t as prepared for as we should have been,” Dall’Acqua said. “They had some more speed there than we were looking for and they just took advantage of the two opportunities that they had…we were very competitive. We had a lot of looks. I think the time of possession is going to reflect that we were certainly in the fight there.”
There were two plays in particular that the Raiders (14-4-2) just missed.
In the 12th minute of the first half, junior Wayne Boone’s potential game-tying goal was just left of the goal from about 20 yards out.
“Wayne had a couple of really good looks, and I think if we had had success there we would have been able to put them back on their heels a little bit, get to their head,” Dall’Acqua said.
Santa Fe appeared to be a step faster in the second half against the Wolfpack (19-3-2) and nearly punched in a goal following a yellow card against O’Neal.
Senior Kishore Rose-Dewil’s free kick to junior Drew Cornell was on target, but his header hit the crossbar.
“He had a really good ball,” Dall’Acqua said. “He got up and got it turned back towards the frame, but it just wasn’t in the cards.”
It was another good season for the Raiders under their second-year coach, which included a second straight district title and falling just one game shy of a regional final appearance.
“The goal coming into it was to get further than we did last year, and we accomplished that,” Dall’Acqua said. “It’s always nice to check things off the list. We put together a schedule that we knew was going to be very, very competitive and would test us. We were hoping to get out of the season at .500, so the boys exceeded the expectations in pretty much every measurable place that we had thought we would be…we’re going to look back on this season very fondly. The boys played their tails off.”
P.K. Yonge 5, Maclay (Tallahassee) 1 (GIRLS)
The top seed Lady Blue Wave advanced to their fourth straight region final with a 5-1 win at home against No. 4 seed Maclay (Tallahassee) in a Class 2A-Region 1 Semifinal.
They scored three goals in less than five minutes and led 3-0 before the midway point of the half.
Senior Faith Hardy had another hat trick, including a goal just 15 seconds into the second half for a commanding 4-0 lead.
“Maclay was a tough and talented team,” said P.K. Yonge coach Rebecca Schackow. “We had our work cut out for us, for sure. When we were able to settle the ball and pass well, we made some beautiful combinations that resulted in great looks on goal. And we were able to finish five of those looks successfully.”
Hardy had two of her three goals in the second half while seniors Elliot Pancoast and Sydney Colaw picked up the other two goals in the first half.
Pancoast, senior Mae Dodd, junior twins Ellie and Paulina Cervantes, and sophomore Bella Young all picked up an assist.
“Elliot Pancoast was a standout player, creating a lot of great opportunities for her teammates to run onto balls and shoot,” Schackow said. “Faith scored three of the goals tonight despite being marked tightly the entire game.”
Junior goalkeeper Norah Pancoast, Elliot’s sister, had three saves with a goal getting by her after a scrum at the net in the second half.
P.K. Yonge (16-2-1) is one win away from its second straight final-four appearance. The Lady Blue Wave will host No. 3 seed Episcopal (Jacksonville) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday in the region final.
Episcopal (12-5-3) upset No. 2 seed Providence (Jacksonville), 2-0, in the other regional semifinal.
Feb. 14
Girls Soccer
Class 2A-Region 1 Semifinals
1 P.K. Yonge 5, 4 Maclay (Tallahassee) 1
Boys Soccer
Class 1A-Region 1 Semifinals1 St. Joseph (St. Augustine) 2, 4 Oak Hall (11-4) 0
Class 2A-Region 1 Semifinals2 Episcopal (Jacksonville) 3, 6 Williston 1
Class 3A-Region 1 Semifinals1 Wolfson (Jacksonville) 2, 4 Santa Fe (Alachua) 0
