The magic number for the Pine School boys soccer team has dwindled down to one.
One win before completing an undefeated season.
One win before successfully defeating its Class 1A state title.
One more win, and the Knights further cement the greatest run ever from a Treasure Coast soccer program.
Pine School advanced to the Class 1A state championship match after clobbering the Rocky Bayou Christian 6-0 on Friday, Feb. 20 from Orlando Health Stadium from Lake Myrtle Sports Park in Auburndale.
Watch Pine School boys soccer in FHSAA state championship
“We knew they’d be a really strong defensive team, and they definitely were. We played well,” Pine head coach Cam Omsberg said. “We played very well from the beginning, but it was difficult to create clear chances early on against them because they were very organized.”
Ranked No. 1 throughout the season in 1A, Pine (21-0-2) was No. 1 seed in the state bracket while Rocky Bayou Christian (12-7-3), in its first-ever appearance in the state semifinals, was seeded fourth.
The lower-seeded Knights used numerous long clearances to try to thwart Pine’s attack. But that wouldn’t last very long.
After a Chris Cabellero got top seed on the scoreboard, the victors exploded for four goals between the first water break and halftime. Benjamin Blanco and Jonah Haffey each put precision crosses into the back of the net while Caden Kerr netted a goal off a deflected shot. However, the highlight of the barrage belonged to Riley Loch.
The junior captain maintained possession in the box and split a pair of defenders with a nifty spin before firing a rocket past Rocky Bayou Christian goalkeeper Trand Scott.
“What a special moment,” Omsberg said of Loch’s wondergoal. “I don’t know how he kept his balance and composure in front of goal. That was a truly special bit of individual play.”
Liam Spahr finished the scoring with a goal early in the second half.
Meanwhile junior goalkeeper Hunter Harrington was not often challenged, stopping five shots en route to the clean sheet. Pine has not allowed a goal in its last seven matches and 16 shutouts this season.
While their opponent in the semifinal round wasn’t a team that they had a lot of history with, the Knights from Hobe Sound are plenty familiar with the team that stands between them and their fourth state title in the last five seasons.
Pine will face No. 2 Fort Myers Canterbury in the 1A state championship game at 7 p.m. Saturday from Auburndale. The two teams battled in two state previous championship games, with Pine collecting one-goal triumphs in 2022 and 2023.
“It’s kind of a unique situation where both teams played on Friday. It’s a very quick turnaround where there’s essentially no time to rest or recover,” Omsberg said. “We’re prepared for it to be the toughest match of our season. I think our schedule up to this point has prepared us well. We’ve played some of the best teams in Florida and we’ve in three finals, but we know this will be our toughest test.”
The Cougars advanced with a 2-1 victory over No. 3 Miami BridgePrep Village Green in a state semifinal Friday evening.
Patrick Bernadeau is a sports reporter for Treasure Coast Newspapers. He can be reached at 772-985-9692, on X at @PatBernadeau or via email at pbernadeau@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Pine boys soccer blasts Rocky Bayou Christian, marches onto 1A title game
Reporting by Patrick Bernadeau, Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
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