Iowa high school boys’ soccer scores: Wednesday’s substate finals roundup

The 2023 Iowa high school boys’ state soccer tournament field is set. Here’s a quick look at all 32 substate finals from Wednesday night.

The state tournament starts Tuesday with the quarterfinals at Cownie Soccer Park in Des Moines. Semifinals are next Thursday and the championship games are next Saturday.

Wednesday’s Class 4A substate finals

No. 5 Cedar Rapids Prairie 2, No. 9 Pleasant Valley 1 (10-9 PK)

It was the game that didn’t want to end. When it finally did after, according to the Quad-City Times, 10 rounds of a penalty shootout, Prairie (15-2) earned a bit of redemption and a third consecutive state tournament bid. Pleasant Valley (13-3) won the last two Class 3A state titles and ended the Hawks’ season in last year’s state semifinals. The Spartans equalized via a 72nd-minute penalty kick, but the host Hawks didn’t wilt and eventually clinched a sixth trip to state.

No. 6 Iowa City West 9, No. 16 Dubuque Senior 3

West (15-2) left no doubt in securing a seventh straight state trip and adding to its state record with a 23rd overall. The Trojans led 7-1 at halftime. Your Prep Sports reported West’s Michael Nelson scored three goals. Senior ended its season 11-5.

No. 10 Cedar Rapids Kennedy 2, No. 15 Iowa City High 1

City High (8-7) handed a Kennedy team that was ranked No. 1 at the time its first loss on April 25, 2-1 in overtime. But the Cougars (12-2) dealt the Little Hawks their final loss and move on to state for the 10th time. The winner was scored in the 71st minute by senior Raymond Freund, according to Your Prep Sports.

No. 1 West Des Moines Valley 2, Sioux City North 1

Top-ranked Valley (17-2) got a significant push from North (10-6) before scoring the go-ahead goal with 3:42 remaining. The Tigers rank second in the state with 22 state tournament appearances.

No. 11 Ankeny Centennial 2, No. 4 Waukee Northwest 1

Last year’s Class 3A runner-up, Northwest (14-4) won the regular-season meeting, 2-1, just 12 days ago, but the Jaguars (9-5) flipped the result on the road to earn their third straight state berth.

No. 7 Ames 2, No. 8 Des Moines East 1

Zach Cuva’s 72nd-minute goal sent the Little Cyclones (13-4) to state for the ninth time and first since 2017. East had tied the score just three minutes earlier.

No. 2 West Des Moines Dowling 5, No. 14 Southeast Polk 0

Dowling (15-2) is state bound for the eighth time and first in 10 years after matching its 5-0 win over Southeast Polk (9-10) in the regular season.

No. 3 Johnston 5, Des Moines North 0

Johnston (15-3) will make a third consecutive state appearance and 11th overall. The Dragons led 2-0 at halftime. North finished 6-7.

Wednesday’s Class 3A substate finals

No. 3 Marion 3, North Scott 0

That’s 18 games, 18 shutouts — or clean sheets, if you prefer — for the Wolves (18-0). Jackson Kirsch scored his state-leading 69th goal of the season and had an assist. Landon Tilkes and Elijah Smith also scored. Marion has advanced to state five times, all in the last six seasons. North Scott finished 7-9.

No. 9 Iowa City Liberty 10, No. 15 Fort Madison 0

A first substate title for the fifth-year Lightning program didn’t come with any drama. Iowa City Liberty (9-8) built a 5-0 halftime lead with two goals from Cooper Saul and one each from Hayden Saul, Roman Riggs and Flori Gembo. The Bloodhounds finished 15-4.

Cedar Rapids Xavier 3, No. 11 Carlisle 2 (OT)

The road to Xavier’s 20th state tournament trip — and Sho Takaoka’s first as head coach — was certainly memorable. The unranked Saints knocked off No. 6 Adel ADM in a penalty shootout on the road Monday, then returned to Central Iowa to play spoiler again two days later. After Carlisle (12-5) grabbed a 2-1 advantage, the Saints (6-10) equalized with six minutes left in regulation and scored the golden goal in overtime.

Denison-Schleswig 4, Storm Lake 1

Denison-Schleswig (10-4) prevailed in a battle of teams that upset ranked opponents in the substate semifinals. The Monarchs beat No. 14 Sioux City West, 3-1, while Storm Lake (8-9) knocked off No. 7 Spencer, 5-2. Denison-Schleswig is state bound for the seventh time and first since a runner-up finish in 2007.

No. 5 Humboldt 4, No. 10 Newton 3

The Wildcats (16-1) broke a 2-2 halftime deadlock and made it back-to-back state berths after a debut last year. Newton finished 11-7.

No. 2 Des Moines Hoover 2, No. 12 Pella 1

Pella (9-8) struck first, but the Huskies (16-1) roared back with a pair of second-half goals for their first state bid in 15 years and third all-time.

No. 6 Norwalk 2, No. 8 Urbandale 1

Jack Brown scored two goals in the first 17 minutes and Norwalk (11-7) advanced to state for the 14th time, but first in six years. Urbandale (6-11) was a 3A qualifier last year.

No. 1 Dallas Center-Grimes 4, No. 13 Council Bluffs Lewis Central 2

The Mustangs (13-3) led 3-1 at halftime and knocked out the reigning Class 2A champions. Dallas Center-Grimes is state bound for the eighth time and fourth in the last five seasons. Lewis Central finished 12-6.

Wednesday’s Class 2A substate finals

No. 11 Center Point-Urbana 1, No. 9 Decorah 0 (OT)

Drew Schellhorn scored the golden goal on the road for the Stormin’ Pointers (12-3). Center Point-Urbana will make its third state appearance and first since 2019. Decorah (14-3) fell a game shy of state for the second year in a row.

No. 1 Gilbert 3, No. 10 Williamsburg 1

Williamsburg (13-4) held on for 46 minutes after scoring the opener early. But the top-ranked Tigers (18-2) scored three times in the second half to advance to state for the sixth time in the last eight seasons. A clearance that deflected off Gilbert’s Truman Kruckenberg and in served as the game-winner.

No. 3 Sioux City Heelan 2, No. 15 Sioux Center 0

Heelan (13-2) shut out Sioux Center (9-5) for its seventh state appearance and first in seven years.

No. 4 Webster City 8, No. 14 Hampton-Dumont-CAL 0

A third win over the Bulldogs (11-6) this season gave Webster City (14-1) its second state-qualifying banner and its first in 11 years.

No. 2 Davenport Assumption 5, Burlington Notre Dame/West Burlington 0

Last year’s Class 1A champion, Assumption (15-1) will take aim at the 2A title in its 10th state appearance next week. The Nikes, who won the 2021 1A title in their first state tourney, finished 13-7.

No. 5 Nevada 4, No. 13 Knoxville 0

Nevada (15-4) was up 1-0 at the half and pulled away for its 13th state bid and second in a row. Knoxville finished 9-7.

No. 7 Greene County 3, No. 12 Chariton 0

The Rams (13-4) scored in the 17th, 25th and 38th minutes and grabbed a spot at state for the third time in the last four seasons. Chariton finished 12-3.

No. 6 Perry 3, No. 8 Glenwood 1

Perry (11-7) scored the first two goals and clinched its fifth state tournament bid. Glenwood ended its season 11-4.

Wednesday’s Class 1A substate finals

No. 2 Iowa City Regina 8, Dyersville Beckman 0

Regina (17-4) beat new River Valley Conference rival Beckman (11-7) for the third time this season, this time decisively. The Regals scored twice in the 30th minute and piled on another in the 32nd as they took a 4-0 halftime lead, with two goals apiece from Eddie Peterson and Jack Hoover. They doubled that lead in the first 14 minutes of the second half. Regina’s previous two wins over the Trailblazers were both by one-goal margins. Regina is state bound for the 15th time after seeing a streak of 13 consecutive appearances end last season.

No. 5 West Liberty 5, No. 15 Mediapolis 0

Class 1A goals leader Juan Mateo scored the first two goals, his 37th and 38th of the season, and West Liberty (15-2) extended its state tournament streak to four consecutive seasons. Diego Hernandez’s free-kick goal made it 3-0 at the half. Mediapolis closed at 12-3.

West Branch 2, No. 14 Pella Christian 1 (OT)

Pedro Mitom, welcome to West Branch lore. The senior scored an overtime winner from around 40 yards out to send the Bears (14-3) to state for the first time in the program’s fourth season. Joe Hamann scored first for visiting West Branch in the sixth minute. Pella Christian (7-9) tied it in the 33rd.

No. 4 Western Christian 3, No. 7 Unity Christian 2

Class 1A runner-up the last two seasons, Western Christian (12-2) will again make the trek to Des Moines for its fourth state tournament appearance. The Wolfpack led 2-1 at halftime and won the rubber match against the Knights (11-6) after a regular-season split.

No. 1 Grundy Center/Gladbrook-Reinbeck 4, Denver 1

GC-GR (18-0) drew a tricky substate, but showed why it’s the unbeaten, top-ranked team in Class 1A this week. It handled No. 8 North Fayette Valley, 4-0, in Monday’s semifinals, then put in four more goals for its third win over Denver (9-10) this season. Gladbrook-Reinbeck last advanced to state in 2016 and the combined program was there twice before.

No. 9 Waterloo Columbus 3, No. 11 Hudson 1

Columbus (9-8) earned its 10th state tournament bid by avenging a 2-0 regular-season loss to Hudson (9-8).

No. 3 Des Moines Christian 4, No. 10 Van Meter 2

Des Moines Christian (11-4) scored the last three goals for its second win over Van Meter (8-10) this season. The Lions are state bound for the fourth time.

No. 6 Treynor 4, No. 12 Underwood 1

A second three-goal win over Underwood (12-5) this season sent Treynor (13-5) to state for the second time.

Comments: nathan.ford@thegazette.com