High school soccer: Mustangs gallop past Dixie and into 4A finals

WOODS CROSS — Despite losing to 4A contenders East and Lehi in the preseason, and then stumbling to a third-place finish in Region 5, Mountain Crest always believed it was one of the best teams in the state. Now the northern Utah school is one win away from making it official.

Sophomore midfielder Daniel Flores sent the Mustangs into the 4A title game with an 89th-minute overtime goal to lead his team to a 2-1 semifinal victory over Dixie on Tuesday afternoon.

His crafty toe-poke at the top of the box just in between a Dixie defender and keeper was a stunning end to a very evenly-matched game at Woods Cross High.

"That's what it takes in overtime, somebody giving just a little bit extra effort, a little bit smarter play. That can be the difference, and it was today," said Mountain Crest coach Mike Gurney.

The Region 5 No. 3 seed will next face the winner of today's Highland-Mountain View game in the 4A championship Thursday at Rio Tinto Stadium at 7 p.m.

A bit overwhelmed with the attention of being the goal-scoring hero, Flores recounted the moment simply, "I really wanted to score 'cause our team tried so hard to make it to the finals."

Unlike its first two playoff victories in which it never trailed, Mountain Crest had to deal with some adversity in the semifinals.

Just three minutes before the half, Mountain Crest's defense was caught a bit flat-footed and Dixie striker Trenton Truman was in perfect position to head a cross from Creighton Atkin over the Mustangs' charging keeper for the 1-0 lead.

Despite its first deficit of the playoffs, there was no panic at the half for Mountain Crest.

"At halftime we felt like we could definitely get a goal in on these guys, we knew we just needed to get one and it would lift the team, and it really did," said Gurney.

It took a while to settle in after the break, but the Mustangs eventually found the equalizer they were looking for in the 58th minute as Kaden Clark calmly buried a cross that Dixie initially failed to clear.

Mountain Crest's defense, led by Jacob Rounds, buckled down the rest of the way, which is exactly what Gurney expected.

"They're a very experienced defense. Three seniors and a junior. They're very smart defenders," said Gurney. "They've just gotten to the point where they know where each other are going to be. They're a cohesive unit. They're hard to beat."

Dixie's defense wasn't easy to break down in the latter stages of the match either, but Flores was there to capitalize on the rare mistake in overtime.

email: jedward@desnews.com