Sports360AZWritten Piece by Andres Acuna/Video by Jordan Hamm
The Brophy Broncos beat the Chaparral Firebirds 2-1 in comeback fashion to reclaim its second straight state championship win on Wednesday.
Brophy found themselves down 1-0 very early in the first half of the game, after a goal from Chaparral’s sophomore midfielder Aysa Hamid. The goal sent Brophy’s stands into an immediate silence, which remained eerily quiet for a few minutes after the ball found the back of the net.
The Broncos found themselves in slightly unfamiliar territory going into halftime.
“I just challenged them. I said, ‘We have a lot of talent, but you have to match that with some work ethic and some physicality.’” Brophy soccer coach Paul Allen said. “It’s good to be doubted, you get to grit it out a little bit more.”
The challenge seemed to work. Throughout the entire second half, Brophy’s defense smothered Chaparral while they had the ball and did not give them many chances to get anywhere close to the net.
Two lightning-fast goals within six minutes of each other paced the Broncos. The first goal, was an easy kick for senior midfielder Logan Abele. The second goal was a header by senior defensemen Anthony Hidalgo. Both goals were set up by senior Case Montanile.
The Broncos accomplished something they weren’t able to do against Chaparral in the regular season, a matchup that resulted in a tie.
“Before, the problem (against Chaparral) was not being able to finish,” Montanile said. “I think this game we found some openings that we couldn’t find in the other game and we put a couple away, which was nice.”
This was Brophy’s third straight state championship game and second straight state title. The team finishes its regular season with a combined regular season and playoff record at 22-2-1, with its only losses to coming from teams out of state.
On Wednesday, the Broncos were ranked #12 in the nation.
