Photo by Sarah Finnegan.
Briarwood’s Hamilton Bowen (19) at the 2017 AHSAA soccer tournament against Randolph in Huntsville. The Lions are looking to get back to the state championship game once again.
Being 30 minutes away from a state championship and letting the opportunity slip away can be a devastating blow to a team, but the Briarwood Christian School boys soccer team is using it as motivation.
The Lions held a 2-1 lead over Randolph early in the second half and saw it turn into a 3-2 loss in last May’s Class 4A-5A state final.
“It was so tough,” said senior defender Bryant Wood. “I remember falling on my knees. There was so much we put into that game and the season.”
Briarwood had a young team last spring, with only one departing senior and 10 freshmen. From the outset, the Lions’ goal was just to get to the state semifinals. But in the words of coach Dr. Shawn Brower, “once you’re there, let’s just do this thing.”
“This year, the hope is that we finish what we would have liked to have done last year and win it,” Brower said.
The Lions are young no more. Equipped with the experience from last year’s run, the roster now boasts six seniors, including Wood and Jacob Badolato, captains and defenders that play alongside one another.
“After we lost state, those next three or four weeks, I was probably in the best shape of my life because I was going out running 3 or 4 miles every day,” Badolato said. “We have our sights set on a goal this year.”
In order to achieve that goal, Briarwood will have to avoid looking too far ahead. The mantra for this year’s group has been “humble and hungry.”
“I’d be remiss if I didn’t say we’re hoping to be back there,” said Brower. “But we don’t want to presume. We know that it’s a game of inches and anything can happen. … Let’s just take every game in front of us and maximize the opportunity.”
Briarwood quickly got a taste of what could happen if it doesn’t play at top form each game. The Lions began the season with a 3-2 loss to Indian Springs, then went 2-1-1 at the Southern Shootout in Foley.
But entering the final week of the regular season, the Lions had not lost since, ripping off 17 consecutive wins. They knocked off the likes of Chelsea and Spain Park, won the Metro Tournament and dominated area competition.
“This year, as seniors, there’s more of a sense of urgency to leave it all out on the field,” Badolato said. “We’re trying really hard this year and we’re just trying to keep the guys focused. That’s a big part of it.
Badolato and Wood also reiterated Brower’s “humble and hungry” line and understand the need to take each practice and each game as it comes.
“It’s great when that kind of talk comes from within,” Brower said.
Offensively, Brower has been impressed with how senior Griffin Felton has improved over the past few years. He also called Hamilton Bowen and Logan Frost “a handful” for opposing defenses.
Bailey Morman, the Lions’ center midfielder, is a player that the “stat book won’t reveal how valuable he is,” according to Brower.
Grant Fielding, Thomas Amster and Jay McClung are the other three seniors for the Lions, along with Wood, Badolato and Felton. It’s their mission to go out on top this time.
“This season, we have a second chance to get redemption,” Wood said.
