It’s been a couple of years since Des Moines Christian even made it to the Iowa high school boys soccer state tournament, having last made an appearance in 2023.
The No. 3 Lions more than made it to the tournament this season, though. They’re headed to the Class 2A championship game after taking down No. 2 Unity Christian, 1-0, on June 5.
“We’re stoked,” said head coach Brian Springer. “We didn’t have this on our bingo card at the beginning of the season. We start four freshmen, we play about five or six of them, and they gelled really quickly.
“So, about midway through the season, this became a reality for us, and we’ve been persevering through adversity the last week or two.”
The first half passed without much action, as both teams engaged in a back-and-forth battle that resulted in a dozen combined shots, but no changes on the scoreboard.
The Knights came the closest to a goal when Brody Emmelkamp headed the ball toward the net from inside the left corner of the goal area with under 10 minutes remaining in the first half, but it landed in the hands of Des Moines Christian keeper Carter Pickard.
There were no more close calls on either side for the remainder of the opening 40 minutes, and the Lions and the Knights were knotted, 0-0, at halftime.
Coming out of the locker room, Unity Christian picked up a few early opportunities. The Knights had two shots – one off a free kick – in the first minute-and-a-half of action, and Unity Christian picked up 10 shots – eight that Pickard was forced to get a piece of – before the Lions got one off.
The total number of shots didn’t matter, though, just the one that went in.
With just under eight minutes remaining in regulation, William Mathson sent a corner kick to the top of the goal area, where Paul Bruggeman dropped in among a cluster of Unity Christian defenders. He got his head on the ball, and it bounced into the right corner of the net – right past the Knights’ diving goalie.
For the second time in program history and first time since 2018 – when the Lions finished as runners-up – Des Moines Christian will compete for a state title.
The Lions will take on No. 1 Gilbert at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 6.
“I’ve been to the state tournament as a player,” Springer said. “These guys work so hard, and to see them be in the spot they deserve is all a coach could ask for. We’re humble, but it’s emotional, and we’re excited.”
Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at ahertel@dmreg.com or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Des Moines Christian advances to first boys soccer title game since 2018
Reporting by Alyssa Hertel, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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By Alyssa Hertel, Des Moines Register | USA TODAY Network
