Playoff roundup: Top seeds fall in 5A girls soccer semis — PHOTOS
Megan Kingman has given the Coronado girls soccer team consistency at the goalie position for the last three seasons.
With a spot in the state title game on the line, the senior stood tall for the Cougars.
Kingman made several saves late, and Ryan Neel scored a goal early in the second half as No. 4-seeded Coronado upset top-seeded Bishop Gorman 1-0 in a Class 5A state semifinal Friday at Coronado.
Coronado (17-4-5) will play Faith Lutheran for the title at 10 a.m. Saturday at Coronado. Gorman finishes 18-4-2.
“They played connected,” Coronado coach Dana Neel said. “This team, because we’ve been through so much, we’re a close team, and that shows on the field. They were connected and communicated well.”
Ryan Neel scored eight minutes into the second half, gathering a loose ball in front of the goal and tapping it in for the score. Kingman made saves on four Gorman scoring chances in the final 10 minutes.
Kingman “was confident and in the second half was really strong,” Dana Neel said.
It’s the fourth straight meeting between Coronado and Faith Lutheran for the title in the state’s top classification.
Faith Lutheran defeated Coronado 1-0 in overtime to win the title last year and won it in 2019. The Cougars won the title in 2021.
“We have to play our game,” Dana Neel said. “It’s up to us, with what we bring. If we can keep our heads on and the mental aspect together, then we’ll have it.”
— No. 3 Faith Lutheran 3, No. 2 Liberty 0: At Coronado, Allison Rabe and Andrea Leyva scored in the first half as the Crusaders (18-4-2) blanked the Patriots (15-4-1) in the other 5A state semifinal.
“The girls worked hard and did exactly what we wanted them to do,” Faith Lutheran coach McKenzie Karas said. “(The early goals) set the tempo, and it gave us a lot of positivity and the energy we needed.”
Brianna Lee added a second-half goal, and goalie Demi Gronauer recorded the shutout for the Crusaders.
Coronado and Faith Lutheran played to a scoreless draw Sept. 13. The Crusaders won at home 3-1 on Oct. 19 in the teams’ most recent meeting.
“It’ll be another good Faith-Coronado game,” Karas said. “It’ll be another good battle. I can’t complain, that’s who I was hoping to be in the championship game against.”
— No. 1S Foothill 5, No. 2N Bishop Manogue 3: At Carson High, Aly Papka had three goals and an assist to lead the Falcons (22-0-2) past the Miners (21-1-2) in a 4A state semifinal. Tianna Hunsaker added two goals and two assists for Foothill.
The Falcons will play Northern champion McQueen (21-1-2) — which defeated No. 2S Centennial 2-0 in the other state semifinal — for the championship at 10 a.m. Saturday at Carson. Centennial finishes 18-5-2.
— No. 1S Pahrump Valley 1, No. 2N Elko 0 (SO): At Cristo Rey, the Trojans (23-1-2) won a penalty shootout 4-3 to defeat the Indians (20-5-2) in a 3A state semifinal.
Andrea Sauceda Amadorn scored the winning penalty kick and goalie Avery Moore made a save on Elko’s seventh shooter to secure the win for Pahrump Valley.
Pahrump Valley will play Northern champion Truckee (20-3-1) — a 2-0 winner over No. 2S Virgin Valley (14-3-2) in the other state semifinal — for the state title at noon Saturday at Cristo Rey.
Boys soccer
— No. 2S Coronado 4, No. 1N Sparks 2: At Carson High, Dylan Flores had two goals and an assist to help the Cougars (19-2-4) hand the Railroaders (22-1-2) their first loss of the season in a 5A state semifinal.
Austin Kiernan and Connor Morgenthal added goals for Coronado, which led 4-0 at halftime.
The Cougars will play Palo Verde for the state title at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Carson. Palo Verde defeated Coronado 4-3 for the Southern League title Nov. 4.
— No. 1S Palo Verde 5, No. 2N Hug 0: At Carson High, the Panthers (18-4-4) scored two minutes into the game and never looked back en route to a victory over the Hawks (17-4-1) in the other 5A state semifinal
Robert Sarkisian, Even Odle, Daniel Mercado, Francesco Traniello and Garabed Saccoyan scored for the Panthers, and goalie Henri Kettner logged the shutout.
In the regular season, Palo Verde lost to Coronado 1-0 on Sept. 20. The two teams played to a 1-1 draw Oct. 24.
— No. 2D Bonanza 3, No. 1M Faith Lutheran 1: At Coronado, Ariel Santiago scored the go-ahead goal in the second half to break a 1-1 tie as the Bengals (15-4) knocked out the reigning state champion Crusaders (17-3-3) in a 4A state semifinal.
Walter Ochoa added two goals for Bonanza, who will face Desert League champion and No. 1-seeded Sierra Vista — a 3-2 winner over No. 6M Cheyenne in the other semifinal — for the state title at noon Saturday at Coronado.
— No. 1D Sierra Vista 3, No. 6M Cheyenne 2: At Coronado, Lazzar Ramos scored three goals and the Mountain Lions (17-2-1) held on to defeat the Desert Shields (6-9-2) in the other 4A state semifinal.
After a scoreless first half, Ramos gave Sierra Vista a 3-0 lead. Riley Galloway and Franco Krstanovic helped the Mountain Lions’ defense fend off a late Cheyenne rally.
— No. 1S SLAM Academy 3, No. 2N North Tahoe 1: At Cristo Rey, the Southern Region champion Bulls (19-1) scored twice in the first half and held off the Lakers (14-8-2) in a 3A state semifinal.
SLAM Academy will play Northern champion South Tahoe — a 3-1 winner over Virgin Valley in the other semifinal — for the state title at 10 a.m. Saturday at Cristo Rey.
Girls volleyball
— No. 1S Bishop Gorman 3, No. 2N Reno High 0: At Sunrise Mountain, Ayanna Watson had 17 kills and Leila Toailoa had 15 as the Gaels (33-5) rolled to a 25-11, 25-12, 25-16 victory over the Huskies (22-7) in a 5A state semifinal.
Tatum Thompson had 19 digs and Trinity Thompson added 41 assists for Gorman, who lost to Reno in five sets in last year’s 5A state semifinals.
Gorman will play Coronado — a 20-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-18 winner over Northern champion Spanish Springs in the other 5A state semifinal — for the state title at noon Saturday at Sunrise Mountain. Gorman defeated Coronado in four sets to win the Southern Region title Nov. 4.
— No. 2S Coronado 3, No. 1N Spanish Springs 1: At Sunrise Mountain, Coronado (23-8) overcame deficits in the second and third sets on its way to a four-set victory over the Spanish Springs (27-5). Rachel Purser had a .520 hitting percentage to lead Coronado.
— No. 2L Durango 3, No. 1S Tech 0: At Sunrise Mountain, Angelina Guerrero had 17 kills, 10 digs and four aces to lead the Trailblazers (25-11) to a 25-15, 25-10, 25-19 win over the Roadrunners (24-4) in a 4A state semifinal.
Taylor Anderson added 12 kills and 11 digs, and Aracelli Hernandez finished with 30 assists and eight digs for Durango.
The Trailblazers play Lake League champion Legacy — a 25-20, 18-25, 25-14, 25-18 winner over No. 1M Coral Academy in the other semifinal —at 2 p.m. Saturday for the state title at Sunrise Mountain.
— No. 1L Legacy 3, No. 1M Coral Academy 1: At Sunrise Mountain, Jocelyn Taveras finished with 15 kills, 11 digs and three aces as the Longhorns (27-9) defeated the Falcons (26-4) in four sets in the other 4A state semifinal. Arial Fox added 13 kills and five digs for Legacy.
— No. 1S The Meadows 3, No. 2N South Tahoe 0: At UNR’s Virginia Street Gym, the Mustangs (25-3) rolled to a 25-17, 26-24, 25-13 victory over the Vikings (24-5) in a 3A state semifinal.
The Meadows will play Boulder City (27-8) — a 25-23, 25-16, 25-15 winner over Northern champion Elko in the other state semifinal — at noon Saturday for the state title at Virginia City Gym.
— No. 1S GV Christian 3, No. 2N Pershing County 2: At Sunrise Mountain, Ellie Thurman had 27 kills and seven aces as the Guardians (28-8) won a five-set thriller 25-10, 25-16, 24-26, 24-26, 16-14 over the Mustangs (18-11) in a 2A state semifinal.
GV Christian will face Northern champion North Tahoe — a 25-13, 25-13, 25-21 winner over Lake Mead Academy in the other semifinal — for the state title at 10 a.m. Saturday at Sunrise Mountain.
Football
— No. 1 Centennial 35, No. 2 Somerset-Losee 28: At Centennial, the Bulldogs (10-1) held off the Lions (10-3) to win the 4A Desert League title.
Centennial will play Mountain League champion Sunrise Mountain — a 6-0 winner over Canyon Springs in the Mountain League title game — for the 4A state title Nov. 21 at Allegiant Stadium.
Other scores
Girls soccer
Class 3A state semifinals
No. 1N Truckee 2, No. 2S Virgin Valley 0
No. 1S Pahrump Valley 1, No. 2N Elko 0 (SO)
Boys soccer
Class 3A state semifinals
No. 1S SLAM Academy 3, No. 2N North Tahoe 1
No. 1N South Tahoe 3, No. 2S Virgin Valley 1
Girls volleyball
Class 3A state semifinals
No. 1S The Meadows 3, No. 2N South Tahoe 0
No. 2S Boulder City 3, No. 1N Elko 0
Class 2A state semifinals
No. 1S GV Christian 3, No. 2N Pershing County 2
No. 1N North Tahoe 3, No. 2S Lake Mead Academy 0
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X. Contact Jeff Wollard at jwollard@reviewjournal.com.
