Photo by Erin Nelson.
Oak Mountain’s Om Shrestha (10) takes a shot at the goal as the Eagles face Daphne in the boys Class 7A state championship game at John Hunt Soccer Complex in Huntsville on May 14.
The Eagles fell to Daphne 2-0 in the Class 7A boys state championship game at John Hunt Park in Huntsville last month.
Daphne scored goals in the eighth minute and the 32nd minute, both put in the back of the net by Henry McMurphy.
In the 40th minute, each team had a player issued a red card, leaving both teams with 10 players the rest of the way.
Despite the adversity, Oak Mountain continued to fight, even outshooting Daphne 23-16 in the game.
“We’re a very resilient group,” Oak Mountain head coach David Di Piazza said. “We’re really young, and we’re really fortunate to have some great senior leadership. All you can ever ask is for your kids to battle throughout the game.”
Houston Graham, Corbitt Grundhoefer, Neil Capocci, John Daniel Rose and Wesley Neumann were the only seniors on this year’s team, which got major contributions from several young players as well.
Oak Mountain toppled Huntsville 1-0 in overtime to reach the final. Aidan Riley scored at the 1:59 mark in overtime to break the seal and send the Eagles to the championship game. Oak Mountain’s Adam Alemond had three saves in regulation in a game dominated by defense. Oak Mountain outshot Huntsville 10-9 in the contest.
Daphne defeated Davidson 4-2 to get to the final as well.
The Eagles finished the season with a record of 18-5-5.
OMHS girls fall in quarterfinals
The defending Class 7A champion Oak Mountain girls soccer team fell to Spain Park 1-0 in the first round of the playoffs. The Eagles finished the season 19-2-1, with both losses coming to the Jags.
Spain Park went on to win the state title behind a 4-0 win over Fairhope on May 14.
