State Quarterfinals

State. Where the good teams are separated from the great ones. Our Spartans took the field against the Mankato West Scarlets at St Cloud State University on a cold late October evening last night.

The Spartans, fresh off their Section 3A Championship were looking to head to the Metrodome for the second straight year. Peter "woody Allen" got his first start at forward this night, and he would be sure not to disappoint. The game would also see the return of Head Coach Franklin Tawah after having missed nearly a month of games. Around 40 faithful members of Spartan Nation made the long journey to support their boys.

The game started off with the Spartans looking like the more in form side. Around 7 minutes in, Sam "the Bulldog" Forsgren sent a wonderful through ball over the top of the Scarlet defense that found Peter "Woody Allen" Wood who was able to put an incredible amount of finesse onto the ball and send it into the back of the net for his first ever varsity goal. 1-0 Spartans, the fans could not have dreamed of a better start. The guys continued to play like the superior team and controlled most of the possession. When the Spartans had the ball they would move it around with exceptional passing and control the tempo of the game. The greatest effort however came from the back, the defense almost never allowed the Mankato attackers to beat them, the four men in the back moved as one with an incredible amount of focus and poise. On the rare occasion that a Scarlet would get a shot off, Ben "Beast" Braman was there to stop it and continue his exceptional late season form.

It was not until the last few minutes of the half however that the Spartans pushed the accelerator and began to make incredible runs that set up marvelous chances. Unluckily though they were not able to put any past the keeper and the half ended with the Spartans up 1-0.

The second half began with the guys hungry to put the game away with a few more goals. The Spartans began to attack constantly but could not seem to find the back of the net. Great runs by the Forsgren brothers as well as inspired play by G-Unit Brennaman were not enough to give the boys the cushion that they deserved. Based on how the defense was playing though, the cushion did not seem like a necessity.

With around 15 minutes left in the game, Josh "Slim Shady" Gray was tripped up in the box by the goalkeeper and earned the Spartans a penalty. Senior Captain Gabe Brennaman stepped up to take the penalty but unfortunately sent it wide of the right post. It did not seem as if the Spartans were going to score anymore goals on the night after that, but the boys kept their cool and continued their domination with an admirable amount of composure.

With 30 seconds left, just when it seemed as if the game would end 1-0, Woody Allen finished what he started with a goal off a header on a high speed breakaway. 2-0 Spartans, and that was all she wrote. The Spartans are headed to the dome. On Monday morning at 8 AM they will take on the Benilde-St. Margarets Knights in the State A Semifinal. The other semifinal will be between the Rochester Lourdes Eagles and Prairie Seeds Academy at 10 AM.

Thanks to all the fans that came out to support the boys last night and we hope to see you all there in the Metrodome. Go Spartans!