With a dominating opening stretch Saturday, the Chattanooga Christian boys soccer team removed all the drama from its Class A/AA state sectional.
The top-ranked Chargers scored three goals in the first nine minutes and cruised to a 4-0 win over eighth-ranked Hixson to advance to the state tournament.
“Today obviously was one of the best jobs of getting out of the gate quick,” Chargers coach Shawn Brower. “I was proud of how our team came out the first 10 minutes.”
Less than two minutes in, Will Taylor chipped a pass to Corey Wilson in the middle, near the top of the box. Wilson then volleyed a shot just below the crossbar and beyond the reach of Hixson goalkeeper Steven Beaulieu.
The Chargers (19-1-2), who haven’t lost since March 20, added to their lead in the sixth minute when Taylor fired what appeared to be a casual shot from near the right sideline, about 35 yards out.
The ball seemed to hang in the air for long time before dipping below the crossbar and hitting the back of the net.
“I actually thought it was going over (the crossbar) at first,” Taylor said.
Rocklin Shumaker put the Chargers up 3-0 in the ninth minute with some nifty dribbling and a well-struck shot from the left side, following a cross from Taylor.
“That’s a great team and once they went up 3-0 I was like, ‘OK …'” Hixson coach Jeff Dean said. “I’m proud of our guys. We haven’t been this far in a long time.”
Things went from bad to worse for the Wildcats (18-3-1) later in the half when Beaulieu left the game with an injury. The Chargers took the 3-0 lead into halftime having put nine shots on goal to none for the Wildcats.
Chargers goalkeeper Josh Blomberg had to make just one save in the game, with a little more than 11 minutes remaining. Otherwise, the CSS defense didn’t allow Hixson many opportunities.
The second half was fairly uneventful — at least until Shumaker scored the game’s final goal. He got the ball well back in CCS territory and proceeded to dribble the length of the field, eluding several Hixson defenders before sliding a shot past backup keeper Chris Bovell.
The Chargers put 14 shots on goal compared to just one for the Wildcats. Brower said CCS will find out Tuesday who it plays in the first round of the state tournament.