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Oct 16, 2024

Boys soccer section finals primer - Post Bulletin | Rochester Minnesota news, weather, sports

ROCHESTER — It was July of 2021 when the announcement came down that Mayo High School had a new boys soccer coach, Mr. Tim Jennings. At the time, with then-head coach Neil Cassidy taking a leave of

ROCHESTER — It was July of 2021 when the announcement came down that Mayo High School had a new boys soccer coach, Mr. Tim Jennings.

At the time, with then-head coach Neil Cassidy taking a leave of absence, it was considered a one-year interim deal for Jennings.

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That ended up not being the case.

Instead, Jennings has found a home at Mayo, establishing the Spartans as once again the top team in Section 1.

"He knows soccer," Pine Island/Zumbrota-Mazeppa coach Rafal Konik said. "He just devotes himself to it. He was at Lourdes before, he coached travel teams for a long time. He was a natural fit when he took that position."

Jennings had been widely known in the Rochester soccer scene. He had coached youth soccer teams in town for the better part of two decades. He'd also been a C-squad or junior varsity coach in the Lourdes boys program for eight years and had been an assistant coach for the minor-league Med City FC men's team.

As Konik mentioned, he and the Spartans have been a perfect marriage.

The program is 63-7-2 with Jennings at the helm and is set to play in its third Section 1, Class 3A final in four years come Tuesday when it hosts No. 2 seed Lakeville North at 7 p.m.

"When Tim Jennings came in, he changed the program right around," Mayo senior Patrick Haslam said. "He got all the players where they need to be, their positions, how they play. Our formation is just all thanks to Tim Jennings."

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With 12 assists, Haslam is one of many on this year's squad to enjoy success in Jennings' scheme. It's a group that plays extremely well together, prioritizing possession with excellent midfield play from players such as Juan Ibarra, Davian Perales and Stephen Gonzalez. It flows perfectly for forwards Cadel Wolf (17 goals) and Parker Nelson (15 goals) up top.

The style of play also limits their opponents' scoring opportunities. The Spartans have allowed just seven goals in 16 games.

The expertise to play together and within the scheme is what has made this year special.

"Their ability to know the roles and responsibilities," Jennings said, "not just of what they've been assigned, but what needs to be done on the field. That situational awareness and not only the where on the field, but the when in the game. They just play so well together."

The Spartans (14-0-2) are now hoping that translates to a third Section title in four years.

In their way stands Lakeville North (10-3-4). The two teams played to a scoreless draw in the first week of the season. That's the exact type of game the Panthers like to play. North has outscored opponents by just 29-15 this year and enters Tuesday a winner of its last seven matches.

"They are a great team," Jennings said. "Very strong, very physical. They attack well, they attack quickly. They're willing to attack in the air. They can play very beautiful balls up and over the top. So we need to do a good job defensively of shutting things down, making sure that we're playing well out of the air and looking to counter attack quickly."

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Another squad that is playing a third section final in four years, is Lourdes.

After a tough half first half of the schedule, the top-seeded Eagles have now won nine in a row after dismantling No. 4 seed Stewartville 3-0 in Saturday's Section 1, Class 1A semifinal.

"I put us through a hard schedule for times like this," second-year coach Eric Feil said.

Saturday's victory set up a Class 1A top-10 ranked showdown, with the No. 6-ranked Eagles (14-3-1) set to take on No. 8-ranked Winona Cotter (17-1) at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Paul Giel Field in Winona.

The teams squared off recently with Lourdes coming away with a 2-1 victory to hand Cotter its lone defeat of the season.

It should be another great contest with both teams playing similar styles that prioritize possession with talented midfielders.

"This Cotter team is good," senior Sam Theobald said. "They have a bunch of technically skilled players. Really fast. Excited to play them."

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Players to keep an eye on are Cotter's Gavin Kammerer (25 goals) and Brayden Novakoski (13 goals, 22 assists) and Lourdes' Blake Moynagh (26 goals) and Jack Broadbent (14 goals, 20 assists).

There was a time when the Pine Island/Zumbrota-Mazeppa boys soccer team had never been to state.

That now feels like a lifetime ago.

The Wildcats are hunting for their fourth consecutive Section 2, Class 1A title when they clash with No. 2-seeded Tri-City United (12-4-2) on Thursday. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at Westcott Field in Austin.

The top-seeded and No. 7-ranked Wildcats (13-2-2), who have won eight straight, are led by all-state midfielder Seth Konik. The senior is the gas that makes the PIZM engine go, controlling pace and facilitating opportunities for teammates including Sven Oberg, Jacob Carter and Anders Hellyer.

Lucas Sems is a great one in goal as well for the Wildcats, who have finished top three at state in two of the last three years. That includes a runner-up finish last year.

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Tri-City United — a school that serves the communities of Montgomery, Lonsdale and Le Center — is led by forward Angel Ruiz Gomez. The freshman has notched 22 goals this year, including a hat trick in a 6-0 semifinal victory over St. James.

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