Jack - Well stated. Here are my thoughts from last night's match that I prepared for a local sports radio station in the Midlands for this morning:
Last night was very interesting.
On a possession chart, Northwestern dominated the match and was in control for 80% of the match. However, freshman Antoine Parris -- who I predicted would be a wild card in the match -- came to play last night for the Vikings and his two scores were sheer athleticism and power. He's going to be a special player for Spring Valley. Davis Jenkins was outstanding in the net and the Vikings were very efficient with their opportunities as Spring Valley only had 5-6 attempts all night.
Northwestern plays the way a lot of soccer enthusiasts hope the game can be played and, in years past, Spring Valley has been able to exploit the "beautiful game" in that same manner. However, this group of Vikings which was battle tested with a tremendous schedule this season, relied on a blue collar work ethic, physical aggressiveness, and pure grit.
Congratulations to Coach Dave Clark and Spring Valley on the Class 4A boys soccer championship! And, congratulations to Dom Wren and the Northwestern program on their tremendous run the past two years!
