— McIntosh boys win 9th state championship —
The Chiefs are back in first place. Peachtree City's McIntosh High School won its ninth state boys soccer championship with a 2-1 victory over Decatur.
“We wanted this as much, if not more, than any previous win,” McIntosh coach Bunkie Colvin said. “We had a group of people who were willing to do everything we asked them to do, even though people didn't think they could do it.”
Their road to the title began during tough summer training, when early mornings and sun-drenched training did not hold them back. Not only did they conduct business on the field, they also did it in the classroom with five players placing in the top 19 of their senior class academically.
“They wanted to be the best they could be, and they just kept getting better and better,” Colvin said. “They were fighters with guts and determination, and I love them for that. They deserve to be champions, because they earned it every day.”
On game day, it didn't take long for the Chiefs to get going. Nine minutes into the game, Decatur took advantage of a short goal kick.
“Decatur is a well-coached team with a lot of top club players. We knew it would be difficult to beat them,” Colvin said. “The key to winning the game was some details that we saw on film. When they were building up from the back, we realized we could press them and turn them over in dangerous areas. I believed I could do it. If I could win the ball and put it into the middle, I knew the goalkeeper was still on the side and I could hit it right at the back post.”
Under pressure from Carson Candela, the Bulldogs attempted a pass across the middle of the field. Adan Drens read this and attacked for an interception, and with a smooth movement he found the back of the goal before the keeper could react.
In the 24th minute, Miles Strong took a free kick and fired a laser from 25 yards to go for a 2-0 lead.
“It was important to take an early lead.'' The second goal showed all those days of working on set-pieces had paid off when Miles Strong hit the ball against the wall for the winning goal. .”
Decatur struggled in the second half. We put some good pressure in the box and with 14 minutes left it was a 2-1 game. They had a chance to tie the game on a well-placed corner kick in the final minute, but Jackson Brubaker made a punch save with 10 seconds left.
“Our defense was an unbelievable brick wall, from the forwards to the midfield to the defenders.”
The Chiefs finished the season with a 23-0 record and are looking to win their third national championship.
The outsiders gave them little chance of reaching the top, having graduated 17 seniors and returning none of the players who played in the state championship. They began the season ranked just 8th in the state in the coaches poll.
“Our goal was to train hard to improve our overall ability each week to win the game at hand,” Colvin said. “We didn't care about being undefeated until the end of the regular season, and to be honest, we weren't even on the radar in the playoffs because the road to the finals was the hardest.”
They entered the playoffs as the top team in AAAAA, defeating the 8th place team in the second round, the 3rd place team in the quarterfinals, the 4th place team in the semifinals, and the 2nd place team in the final.
“The road to victory wasn't easy,” Colvin said, echoing the team's motto: “Never doubt the Chiefs, because 'Champions find a way.'”
