Two schools separated by 14 miles of road met Monday night to decide the Nebraska School Activities Association Class A boy’s soccer state championship. For the first time ever, the games were aired live by NET Nebraska.
Millard West and Creighton Prep played beneath the lights in Creighton’s Morrison Stadium for a sizable crowd, but only the Wildcats left the stadium as state champions, winning 3-1.
A push inside the box gave Creighton Prep a penalty kick with 14:01 remaining the first half. The Junior Jays weren’t about to miss the opportunity, and Prep seized a 1-0 lead. Millard West tied it up on a tremendous sequence, capped by a strike from Dan Zapata with 5 minutes left in the first half. The second half was all Wildcats, and Millard West added two goals off the foot of Caden Frank, winning 3-1.
Video: Millard West, Columbus Scotus win boys state soccer titles
The Wildcats etched their place in the state championship game after beating top-seeded Omaha South in a shootout on the final penalty kick. Millard West keeper Chase Bishop dove to his right, repelled the shot, and elation ensued. Millard West students flocked to the downtown Omaha stadium, adorned in green, to see their team play for their first state championship since 2009.
The Junior Jays got through Omaha Bryan in the first round, before beating a Millard North squad to earn their spot in the state title game.
Earlier in the night, Columbus Scotus took the field against Omaha Skutt Catholic.
The Shamrocks won their second consecutive Class B boys state championship with a 3-0 win over the SkyHawks.
After a scoreless first half, Noah Schacher knocked home the first two goals of the game, and Jake Bos added the final goal for Scotus, who never trailed Monday.
Tuesday, the girls soccer state championship will be decided as Millard West takes on Omaha Marian in Class A, and Gretna takes on Elkhorn South in Class B.
