High school soccer players thrilled to be playing at Rio Tinto

After much wrangling and uncertainty over whether prep soccer championship games would be held at Rio Tinto Stadium, RSL's state-of-the-art soccer venue will be used to host the 5A and 4A boys soccer state championship games tonight.

Brighton and Layton will make history when they square off in the 5A title game at 4:30 p.m. in what will be the first high school soccer playoff match at Rio Tinto Stadium, with the 4A title game between Mountain View and Woods Cross to follow at 7.

The players who will feature in tonight's matches couldn't be more excited about it.

"To play in a big stadium like that, it's a dream for every soccer player," said Layton striker Christian Cannavina. "To be able to have that opportunity to play on the biggest stage, it's an absolute dream for us."

There was uncertainty over whether Rio Tinto Stadium would be used as a high school playoff venue after the UHSAA and RSL failed to sign a deal that had been on the table for months. However, both sides eventually got back together and hashed out an agreement for the 4A and 5A games to be held there this spring.

Going forward, all four prep championship soccer games are planned to be held at Rio Tinto — 2A through 5A — starting with girls soccer next fall and then boys soccer next spring.

For fans attending today, tickets for adults are $5 and tickets for students are $4. According to the UHSAA Web site, on-site parking is $5 per car, with a message encouraging fans to use TRAX as much as possible.

E-MAIL: drasmussen@desnews.com