The Northland Pines boys soccer team defeated No. 4-seeded Barron 1-0 in a regional final contest last Saturday afternoon at Northland Pines High School. The Eagles will host No. 3-seeded Cumberland this Thursday in the sectional semifinal.
Guilherme Amariz Fonseca settles a ball with his foot during the D4 regional final game for the No. 1-seeded Northland Pines soccer team.
For the fourth year in a row, the Northland Pines boys soccer team has won a WIAA Division 4 Regional championship.
This time, the top-seeded Eagles defeated fourth-seeded Barron 1-0 on Sam Larsen Field last Saturday afternoon.
Northland Pines will now host third-seeded Cumberland in the Sectional semifinal this Thursday, Oct. 31, at 3 p.m.
“Well, when you get to this time of the year, you have to bring your best. Being the one seed is tough because there is no coasting under the radar, as every team wants to knock you off and bring their best,” said Pines coach Rodney Sternhagen following the victory.
That is exactly what the Pines boys faced Saturday — a tough, disciplined Barron soccer team that topped fifth-seeded Three Lakes-Phelps 3-0 in the Regional semifinal last Thursday.
“They were prepared and did not stop coming,” said Sternhagen. “This was the best team we faced this year.”
It was a battle from the opening kickoff, but the Eagles had much of the possession. Nonetheless, with the wind at their back, Barron countered well for much of the first half and the score remained 0-0 at the intermission.
Pines started to gain momentum in the second half, mounting attack after attack and having most of the possession. Barron, however, stayed composed and continued to shut down the Eagle attacks.
That was until Guilherme Amirez Fonseca drew a triple team by the Bears, which was able to open Cody Vojta, who made an angled run into the box. He fired off a left-footed ball in the low right corner of the net to give Pines a 1-0 lead at the 76:31 mark in the game.
From that point on, Pines kept possession by keeping the ball to the outside and near the corners, allowing the seconds to tick off the clock and secure the Division 4 Regional championship.
“Hats off to Barron and their hard-working team. They deserve recognition,” said Sternhagen. “Thanks for the battle and a true playoff soccer game.”
Despite the low score, Pines outshot Barron 17-9, but only six Eagle shots were on goal. Barron had four shots on goal and Pines goalie Ryder Will made all four saves. The Eagles had four corner kicks compared to just two for Barron. Pines was whistled for six fouls and Barron was called for 12 fouls in the physical game.
Sectional semi
The top-seeded Eagles, 13-2-3 overall, will host third-seeded Cumberland in the Division 4 Sectional semifinal at Sam Larsen Field in Eagle River this Thursday at 3 p.m. The Eagles beat Cumberland 4-2 in a nonconference game at Cumberland back on Sept. 24.
“Cumberland has a very athletic goalie. He can win games for Cumberland,” said Sternhagen. “We put a great number of shots on goal and yet he kept us off the board.”
Sternhagen said that Cumberland has a solid team and is coming off a 2-0 victory over second-seeded Washburn in its Regional final.
“They have a great deal of talent and a tough midfield,” he said. “They work hard and keep coming at you.”
The Eagles, who placed second in the Great Northern Conference during the regular season, will have to play Northland Pines-style soccer to get a victory on their home turf Thursday, according to Sternhagen.
“We need to possess and move the ball, stretching the field to create solid goal-scoring opportunities,” he said. “We will have to be our best to top this strong team.”
If the Eagles can get past Cumberland, the Sectional final is scheduled for this Saturday, Nov. 2, at Arcadia High School at 1 p.m. The other Sectional semifinal game will feature top-seeded Columbus Catholic facing second-seeded Aquinas.
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