West beats City to win another state title

DES MOINES - You might say the long and short of it for Tanner Schilling was two goals and another state championship for him and the Iowa City West Trojans.

The legacy grows for the best boys' program in Iowa. A 3-1 win Saturday at Cownie Park over Iowa City High in what you could call the real “Battle for the Boot” was West's second consecutive Class 3A title and 32nd consecutive victory.

These Trojans have won an IHSAA-record five championships now and been in a record eight title games, including the last five. This group finished 22-0 and is ranked top 10 nationally.

Unreal stuff.

“I stopped looking at the national rankings about three weeks into the season,” said West Coach Brad Stiles.“ I told my players they needed to stop telling me. Maybe that was just part of keeping myself in check. Trying to keep all these guys (continuing) to perform and do their jobs and not get a big head is a daily, daily task.

“But I give them a lot of credit. They came in well prepared each and every game. No one had a flat game. Whatever they were doing to get themselves ready is fantastic.”

This one had to be a little weird for everyone, and not just because of a 35-minute weather delay late in the first half. City High (13-8) came into the tournament a seventh seed but knocked off numbers two and three to get another crack at their neighbor.

“Probably the most nerve-racking team to play,” Schilling said. “You never really like playing a crosstown rival.”

The junior forward put his club on top with a rare breakaway (the short): a deflected ball near the top of the box sent him in alone on City High goalkeeper Duncan Howard-McGuire just under 15 minutes in. With 10 minutes to go in the half, Schilling scored perhaps the most beautiful goal of the tournament (the long): an absolute howitzer from 35 feet straight out that hit the upper corner.

“We got a little unlucky on the first ball. It was a ricochet,” said City High's J.D. McCullough. “The second goal was a great goal.”

“All the seniors, before the game, I told them that they'd go out with a big bang,” said Schilling. “I felt I owed it to them. They've been backing me up for my whole soccer career. I had to get one in somehow, someway.”

McCullough made things interesting with a successful penalty kick with 14:20 to go. City High pressed for the tie, but West put it away on a Bob Brown goal in the dying seconds.

“We didn't come out ready to play in the first half,” said City High Coach Jose Michel Fajardo. “We let them beat us in the first half.”

Here's video of the storm that delayed the game, from the press box, and an interview with Schilling:

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