Principia boys soccer team blanks Saxony Lutheran in Class 1 state quarterfinal

Principia ended the Saxony Lutheran boys soccer team's season in a 7-0 Class 1 state quarterfinal knockout Saturday at Cape Central High School.

For about the first 10 minutes, the two teams were evenly matched, and most of the action was Saxony maintaining possession in Principia's half with the occasional Principia counter-attack.

That changed when Principia senior George Agai's strike from outside the 18-yard-box sailed over Saxony's goalkeeper and dipped into the net in the ninth minute.

One minute later, junior Kaleb Keller beat his defender long enough to slot the ball under Saxony's goalkeeper to bring the score to 2-0.

Principia had found its winning formula by then, namely speed in its attacking third, and Saxony struggled to adjust. The Crusaders were still able to keep sustained possession in the midfield but were less able to translate that possession into scoring opportunities, while Principia was able to spring Agai on an unsuccessful breakaway on one occasion.

A foul inside the box gave Principia a penalty kick, which Keller tucked away soundly for his second goal of the game at the 18-minute mark.

A three-goal deficit isn't insurmountable, but Keller's penalty kick energized Principia's offense. In the 6 minutes that followed, Principia scored three times.

Senior Cam Sellers scored in the 22nd minute, Keller completed his first-half hat-trick with a goal in the 24th, and Sellers took another in the 25th with a cheeky header off a throw-in.

While Keller was the most effective striker, Agai proved to be Principia's most dynamic offensive agent. His speed and vision threatened the Saxony defense throughout the game.

Saxony's midfield -- the strongest part of its squad -- created a string of chances late in the half. In the 13th minute, Saxony defender Ben Daniel won possession, beat his mark and found a seam in the Principia defensive line. His through-ball threatened to put striker Dustin Lorenz one-on-one with the keeper, but it ran just a bit too long and the keeper snapped it up.

Saxony goalkeeper Jacob Stueve came up big with ten minutes to go in the first half by stopping Agai on another breakaway.

Saxony's midfield struggled to recover for Principia's counter-attacks. Time and again, this left Principia's strikers with space, the type of space they then used to beat Saxony's defenders in flat-out footraces.

But to their credit, during the entire first half, the Saxony side made Principia work for its chances.

By the start of the second half, Saxony looked to be on its heels. And if luck had factored into the Principia offense's sublime first-half numbers, in the second half, their luck seemed to have run out. In the early second half, Principia created several close chances but didn't score. Eventually, the team settled into a pattern of keeping possession, passing and nibbling at the edges of Saxony's defense.

As the half progressed, the fouls from both sides got more physical, but not ugly. Agai came out with 13 minutes left to play, and his substitute, senior Bailey Peticolas, quickly scored to put Principia up by 7.

The win puts Principia in the state final four, and head coach Kipp Keller said afterward that his players were pleased to be advancing.

"I love the spirit of our team. Our work ethic today was awesome," he said. "I respect the team we played today. They never stopped, regardless of the score."

Saxony head coach Max Wieser said the loss is not indicative of the team's season overall.

"But we only graduate 3 this year," he said. "Three starters, but we should be able to be strong again next year."

He pointed out that only two years ago, Saxony won only 4 games. Last season, the Crusaders improved that to 5, and this season, they won 10.

"We're still on the right side of improving," he said.