Trinity Academy soccer to 4-1A semis

Trinity Academy had outplayed Maize South in almost every aspect of the soccer game for 80 minutes only to find itself in sudden death overtime because of missed opportunities.

Knights forward Regan Billings was finally able to capitalize. He snuck in a shot past Mavericks goalie Jordan Nguyen with 4:14 left in overtime to send his team to the Class 4-1A state tournament. The shot was made possible by a well-placed free kick by Cooper Mork that Nguyen batted down right in front of Billings.

“I knew that we needed to crash free kicks all night,” Billings said. “So I just decided to crash the last one and hopefully get it in. I was just in shock at first. Then I just found myself celebrating with my teammates.”

Trinity coach Tom Nykamp didn’t want to see the game go to penalty kicks, and after an early exit from the playoffs in 2009 he was relieved to see Billings’ shot hit the back of the net.

“Last year we had a good team and we went out in the regional finals,” Nykamp said. “A lot of these guys are seniors from that team, and they did not want that to happen again. I’m happy for them, and they’re ecstatic.”

Trinity had been shutdown by Nguyen until game-winning score despite holding a 17-6 edge in shots on goal. Nguyen was aggressive in the box, and in addition to his 15 saves he deterred shots with his positioning.

Maize South’s first-year coach said he was proud of the way Nguyen fended off Trinity’s attack, and was even more proud of his team’s effort this season. The Mavericks, who only had four wins in 2009, ended this season 12-6-1.

“From where we started . . . last year and where we came in such a short time, that’s a testament to how much they’ve worked and improved,” Hutton said. “It hurts to go out like that, but at the same time I wouldn’t want to be the coach of any other team.”

Trinity (15-2-2) won the possession battle in the first half and outshot Maize South 6-3 in the first half and made Nguyen work to keep his team in the game. The Maize South goalie had a few close calls in making the decision to play away from the goal, but his gambles paid off.

Trinity’s Regan Billings had an opportunity to put his team ahead one minute into the second half. He kicked the ball toward an opening in the left corner of Maize South’s goal, but Nguyen closed in at the last moment and tipped it away.

The Mavericks went 15 minutes into the second half before getting a shot on goal off. Trinity’s defense held its ground and surrendered few openings.

Trinity will face Lenexa St. James in the semifinals at 5 p.m. Friday at the Hummer Sports Park Soccer Complex in Topeka.

Maize South 0 0 0— 0

Trinty 0 0 1 —1

Overtime—Trinity, Billings. Shots—Maize South 3-3-1—7; Trinity 6-10-1—17. Saves—Trinty, Nguyen 4-10-1—15; Trinity, Walters 2-2-0—4.

Other 4-1A

Rose Hill 3, Spring Hill 1 — Czyz Taylor and Jessie Treat scored first half goals for Rose Hill in its win at Spring Hill.

Jace Zinkel also scored for the Rockets, who will play Bonner Springs in the Class 4-1A semifinals on Friday in Topeka.

Rose Hill 2 1 — 3

Spring Hill 0 1 — 1

First half—Rose Hill, Taylor (Zinkel), Treat (Zinkel). Second half—Rose Hill, Zinkel (A. Zinkel); Spring Hill, Jesse (unassisted). Shots—Rose Hill 10-8—18; Spring Hill 5-5—10. Saves—Rose Hill, Parrott 4-2—6; Spring Hill, Boyle 3-3—9.

Class 5A

Kapaun 2, Salina Central 1 — David Ewers tied the game with a second-half goal and Chris Caire put the Crusaders ahead for good in a Class 5A quarterfinal at Stryker Complex.

Salina Central 1 0 — 1

Kapaun Mount Carmel 0 2 — 2

First half—Salina Central, Montanez (unassisted) Second half—Kapaun, Ewers (unassisted), Caire (Beebe). Shots—Salina Central 2-4—6; Kapaun 3-5—8. Saves—Salina Central, Emme 1-3—4; Kapaun, Mashnouk 1-2—3.

Liberal 4, Carroll 1 — Connor McGreevy put Carroll up 1-0 with a goal in the first half, but Liberal scored four consecutive goals to advance to the 5A state tournament.

Bishop Carroll 1 0 — 1

Liberal 2 2 — 4

First half—Carroll, McGreevy (McNeal assist);Liberal, Chavira (Gutierrez assist), Gutierrez (unassisted). Second half—Liberal, Martinez (unassisted), Mata (Rios assist). Shots—Bishop Carroll 2-2—4; Liberal 4-9—13. Saves—Bishop Carroll, Hamersky 1-4—5, Brant 0-1-1, Holbrook 0-1-1; Liberal, Gomez 0-2—2.

This story was originally published November 2, 2010 at 11:22 PM with the headline "Trinity Academy soccer to 4-1A semis."