Howard's Kylder Vasquez, right, challenges Hixson's Nathan Hunt in heading the ball Thursday in the District 6-A/AA soccer championship match. Host Howard won 2-0.The final whistle opened the floodgates, as fans and players alike spilled onto the field to share the joy of a historic night for the Howard high school boys' soccer team. For the first time ever, the Hustlin' Tigers can call themselves soccer champions, having earned the District 6-A/AA tournament title.
Host Howard blanked Hixson 2-0 on Thursday to ignite the celebration.
"The feeling is respect," Howard coach Curtis Warner said. "Howard is often thought to be the low of the low and the bottom of the totem pole, so I think this will bring positive things to Howard. Our guys haven't just excelled on the field but in the classroom as well."
The championship marks a new high point of a notable season, and Warner said it has come with its fair share of work.
"I have a team full of alpha males," he said. "It was rocky in the beginning, but now they play together as a team. Our first game of the season was a 10-0 loss, and now we have a 10-win season. Tonight was about heart. No one expected us to get this far."
Howard took advantage of its first shot of the game midway through the first half to take a 1-0 advantage. Yefri Mendez got a low cross from the left side and darted in toward the goal to poke it in.
The early lead lifted some of the pressure and left the Tigers wanting more.
"I knew it would motivate them," Warner said. "I knew it would make or break our team. We have some fight in us, but there's no fight like getting that first goal. But we told them we needed another one, because don't think (Hixson) doesn't want this, too."
Howard carried the slim lead into halftime, as the frustrated Wildcats had a tough time creating dangerous chances outside of corner kicks.
An aggressive Tigers defense kept the Wildcats from finding a connection between the midfielders and the forwards.
"We never got enough people forward," Hixson coach Jeff Dean said. "We never got into the box. After they got that goal, I feel like we played back, and you can't do that against this team. They're fast, and they'll get on you."
With each passing second bringing more urgency, it was more of the same for Hixson in the second half with Howard limiting opportunities.
"I don't think we got four good shots all night," Dean said. "We have to pick up our intensity. We're a better team than we showed tonight."
Neder Martinez brought the Tigers' defense some relief, scoring with just under six minutes to play. Martinez got to the ball just in time to lob it over the Hixson keeper racing out.
With a two-goal cushion, Howard's stingy defense and goalkeeper Jaimie Gomez took care of the rest.
"We looked for the most aggressive players - their top goal scorers and top ball controllers - and made them the focus and adjusted from there," Warner said. "We saw them earlier in the season, so we knew what to look for and the defense played great."
Howard will host Loudon on Tuesday night in a Region 3-A/AA semifinal. Hixson will travel to Boyd-Buchanan.
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com