By Robert Wilson
It took 100 minutes, 20 more than the 80 minutes of regulation, but the East Rankin Academy boys soccer team is back to back state champions.
Eight grader Noah Craig scored in the 98th minute – two minutes before the second 10-minute overtime ended – and had enough energy to do a back flip after he scored the game-winner.
The result was a 2-1 victory over Madison St. Joseph for the MAIS Division III championship at Madison-Ridgeland Academy in Madison.
East Rankin finished 12-9-1, winning its last three games, St. Joe 2-0, Oak Forest, La., 5-0 and the championship win over St. Joe.
“We had a lot of confidence leading into the championship game against St. Joe,” East Rankin coach Reid Westover said. “Seeing and playing them a week earlier gave us a good mindset going on knowing how they play, giving us a good game plan to prepare for them. Also, just knowing we’ve been in a championship before gave us high hopes that we could perform at a high level. The first half was a battle, between two teams very evenly matched, and teams that went every bit of a state title. We were awarded a penalty kick early on, buried by Channing Diveley to give us the 1-0 lead. Not too long after, St. Joe was awarded a penalty kick, giving them a goal to tie it up at 1 heading into halftime. Second half is where we gained some momentum. We became more dangerous in the attacking third, creating a lot for chances. One of the biggest momentum shifts came when a St. Joe player received two yellow cards, turning into a red causing them to play a man down. That opened up the field for us a bit more. At the end of regulation, it was still 1-1. At one point, I noticed a player hurting, asking him what hurts. He responded, ‘everything.’ I said, ‘Good, that means you’re working and giving 100 percent, we need 20 more.’ In the second half of extra time is when we struck. With two minutes left, we finally put one in to take a 2-1 lead. Noah had the confidence to take a defender on, make a move down line, and slot one home by a near post shot. The celebration seemed like it started early, but there was still time left. For the last couple of minutes, we defended well, kept St. Joe in front, and cleared everything out. As the final whistle blew, the real celebration started. Back to back state champs. It took blood, sweat and tears. Such a special group and unforgettable season.”
“It was hard having play teams that wanted the championship just as bad as we did, but all we had to do was play as if it was our last time on the field each time we played,” East Rankin senior Channing Diveley said. “During the championship game, I think we kept our endurance just as we did in any other game. We aren’t the most talented team out there, which meant that we had to work harder than everyone else. I think the world of my teammates and I knew that they didn’t want to lose just as bad as the other team wanted to win, which drove some of the players that haven’t been too confident in the past few weeks to play an outstanding championship game. Winning the championship game again felt surreal. After winning last year, I had doubts about how good we were going to be this year and I just knew that we were going to have to work to be in this position. Winning the ‘ship truly meant the world to me and my teammates, especially it was my senior year. I hope it will happen again next year.”
“It was definitely hard to win back to back, but knowing we had done it before gave us a lot of confidence,” East Rankin junior Nic Riemann said. “From last year to this year, our team did not change a lot, so going into this year we definitely believed we could win again. We practiced and played in preparation to be back there by February. As for the championship game, we had a pretty simple mindset. We knew if we gave it 100 percent we could lose. So out there my other captains and I made sure to keep the level up because if your team sees that they will also play their best.”
“Going into the season, we knew it was going to be a lot more difficult than it has been in recent years,” Westover said. “Not necessarily a reset, but definitely into rebuild mode. We lost six seniors, four starters, and we got put in the toughest district in the state by far. We had a goal before the season started: setting our identity – be the team that steps off the field knowing we outworked the opposition, no matter the result. The regular season had its ups and downs. We have a coulee of winning streaks, a couple of losing streaks, and some injuries. We ended regular season with a 8-8-1 record. We had to travel to play one of the best in the state in Jackson Academy in the first round and we lost to push into the first losing bracket. We beat Bayou Academy 2-0 on the road in a win or go home game. We beat St. Joe 2-1 in a seeding match for the D3 playoff bracket. Then we hosted Oak Forest in D3 semifinals. We got out to a slow start, not finding much rhythm going forward and never got full control of the game, needing a halftime talk while leading 1-0. Coming back into the second half, we caught some fire early and often, scoring four goals in the half to win 5-0 and earn a spot in the championship.”
“I am so proud of the guys in their gritty win in the DIII championship game,” first-year East Rankin athletic director Brooke Rhodes, who is also the girls basketball coach. “They played hard and did what it took even in extra minutes of soccer. Noah made a huge goal late in the second half of overtime and it was great. Coach Reid does a great job of leading and he had them ready to play in the playoff run. We are so grateful to have him coach at ERA.”
