Iowa high school boys’ state soccer 2024: A look at the Gazette area teams

The Iowa high school boys’ state soccer tournament kicks off Wednesday with the quarterfinal round at Cownie Soccer Park in Des Moines. The semifinals follow on Friday (Class 1A and 3A at Drake Stadium; Class 2A and 4A at Mediacom Stadium in Des Moines) and the championship games are scheduled for Saturday at Mediacom Stadium.

Here is a look at the 11 Gazette-area boys’ teams that qualified for state.

Class 4A

Iowa City High (12-3) will open Class 4A’s quarterfinal round with a 7 p.m. kickoff against No. 1 Johnston (17-2).

The 10th-ranked Little Hawks enter the state tournament fresh off a 2-1 win over ninth-ranked Des Moines Roosevelt in the substate finals.

Johnston is currently on a nine-game win streak and looking to repeat as 4A state champion.

At 7:10 p.m., fourth-rated Iowa City West (19-2) will meet No. 5 West Des Moines Valley (16-3).

The Trojans dropped Valley, 2-0, when the teams met in Iowa City on March 29.

Led by Daniel Fuentes, West is 4A’s top scoring team with 89 goals. Valley is second with 77.

Class 3A

Eighth-ranked Marion (14-4) faces No. 6 Norwalk (11-8) at 10:10 a.m.

The Wolves are back in the state tournament for the fourth straight season. They are led in goals by sophomore Cole Angell with 16.

The Warriors were last year’s 3A runners-up to Iowa City Liberty.

At 10:20, it’ll be a battle of two ranked Cedar Rapids foes as No. 5 Cedar Rapids Xavier (10-5) squares off against No. 9 Cedar Rapids Washington (11-7).

The Saints beat the Warriors, 3-1, at home on April 19.

The Warriors have a potent offense. They’re tied with Marion for fourth in goals scored (64) in 3A, led by Holden Smith’s 16.

Class 2A

Unranked Center Point-Urbana made its way to state after upsetting No. 7 AP-DNH United in the substate finals.

The Stormin’ Pointers will need to stay hot to hang with top-ranked and defending state champion Gilbert (17-0) at 1 p.m.

It’s been a jumpstart year for a third-ranked Decorah (15-3) team that hasn’t been to state since 2010.

The Vikings are set to kick off against No. 9 Perry (11-5) at 1:20 p.m.

The Bluejays are 2A’s seventh-highest scoring team with 63 goals; Decorah is right behind them with 59.

Class 1A

Four Gazette-area teams qualified for state in 1A.

At 4 p.m., No. 1 West Branch (18-0) will kick off against Van Meter (14-5).

The Bears are 1A’s third-best scoring team, putting 98 goals through this season. They have two players with 25-plus goals (Joe Hamann and Christian Scire).

Fifth-ranked West Liberty (12-5) kicks off against No. 4 Western Christian (12-4) at 4:10 p.m.

The Wolfpack knocked the Comets out of the state tournament in 2021 and 2022. Now, the Comets have another shot at revenge.

No. 3 North Fayette Valley (15-3) seeks its first state tournament win in program history. The TigerHawks will face No. 7 West Sioux (12-3) at 4:20 p.m.

North Fayette Valley is the second-highest scoring team in the state with 105 goals. Lincoln Aeschliman leads the TigerHawks with 29 goals.

Second-ranked Iowa City Regina (15-3) will have a tough task against an eighth-ranked Hudson (14-5) team that just blanked No. 9 Grundy Center/Gladbrook-Reinbeck in the substate finals, 1-0. Kickoff is set for 4:30.

Recommended Reading

Boys’ state soccer brackets, schedule for all 4 classes