GLENDALE — All week, Phoenix Northwest Christian’s 11 returning girls soccer players wore their 3A state championship rings from a season ago. They wore them to class. They wore them to practice. And finally, on Friday night, they wore them to Glendale High School, where the Crusaders played Sabino in this year’s state championship.
There, they earned their second set of rings in as many years, beating the Sabercats, 5-2.
For Northwest Christian coach Jeff Penzone, it’s a dream ending. Before the season, he decided that this would be the last of his 26 years coaching high school soccer in the Valley, including 18 at Northwest Christian and eight with the Crusaders’ girls program.
“Every coach dreams about going out on top and I’ve been blessed with that,” Penzone said. “So I’m pretty excited about it.”
Sabino junior midfielder Alycia Skog kicks the ball during Friday's Class 3A state title match against Phoenix Northwest Christian at Glendale High School.
Early on, though, Northwest Christian encountered troubles it has rarely faced over the past two seasons, when it’s won 32 of 33 matches.
In its 3-5-2 formation, Sabino overloaded Northwest Christian’s midfield, controlling the early part of the game. Seven minutes in, the Sabercats’ efforts were rewarded when senior Ella Sabel buried a long-distance free kick over the head of goalkeeper Taylor Paulus.
Eight minutes later, Northwest Christian bounced back when sophomore Cassidy Garberding got on the end of Tatum Berkwitt’s low-driven cross. That set the tone for a back-and-forth half that ended 2-2, with neither side able to wrestle full control.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the girls,” Sabino coach Mack Samuelson said. “As a first-year coach, when you get a group like this and you get the opportunity to be here in this game, it’s really special.”
After halftime, any semblance of balance quickly faded.
On the guidance of assistant coach Eric Maston, Penzone dropped Northwest Christian into a 4-5-1, balancing out the midfield and giving junior striker Ellie Johannes freedom up top.
The change worked to perfection. In the first 20 minutes of the second half, Sabino only touched the ball on desperate clearances as Johannes terrorized their back line. Over the past two seasons, this has become a familiar theme for Northwest Christian’s opponents. Johannes, who is committed to Indiana and plays for El Salvador’s U-20 national team, has scored 107 goals in that span.
She added to that tally once in the first half and again five minutes into the second, when she headed home senior Ava Campbell’s corner kick at the far post.
“We have a confidence in our team and once we’re ahead, the other team’s just done,” Johannes said. “So after the second goal I had, the header, I was like, we’re done. We’re gonna lock them down.”
Twelve minutes later, Sabino’s comeback hopes were dashed for good, this time on a piece of Johannes magic.
The junior, who is not playing high school soccer next season to instead prepare for college, controlled a long ball on the left wing and went straight at a defender, doing a pair of stepovers to get her off balance. When the defender lunged for the ball, Johannes took advantage, poking it between her legs. From there, she cut inside, past another defender and slotted home to the near post.
After falling to the turf while shooting, Johannes peaked up, saw the ball in the back of the net and raised her arms victoriously while teammates swarmed her in celebration.
“Just stupid ridiculous how well she plays,” Penzone said. “… She put the ball in the back of the net at times when we really, really needed it.”
When the referee’s final whistle blew — one goal and 23 minutes later — Johannes again raised her arms in the same victory formation. This time, it was official. For the second straight year, Northwest Christian is 3A champs.
“The first time, it was surreal,” Johannes said. “This year, it’s just special.”
— Theo Mackie,
The Arizona Republic
Ironwood Ridge’s Sophia Munoz gets tangled up with Flowing Wells’ Kayla Bailey during the second quarter of Friday night’s state playoff game. The top-seeded Caballeros advanced.
Top-seeded Salpointe boys, Flowing Wells girls advance
A pair of top seeds — Salpointe Catholic’s boys team and Flowing Wells’ girls team — advanced in Friday night’s state quarterfinals with a pair of wins.
Salpointe dispatched eighth-seeded Glendale Cactus 65-57. The Lancers will host fourth-seeded Glendale Deer Valley on Tuesday night, with the winner advancing to the Class 4A state final.
Flowing Wells beat ninth-seeded Ironwood Ridge 56-45 in an all-Southern Arizona Class 5A girls quarterfinal matchup. The top-seeded Caballeros will host No. 4 Gilbert on Wednesday night.
Two other girls teams — Catalina Foothills in Class 5A and Sabino in 3A — lost in Friday’s quarters, ending their seasons.
