The Albuquerque Academy Boys Varsity travelled to the fields up in Bernalillo to face Santa Teresa in the state semi-finals.

Santa Teresa is from down near El Paso. They don’t play any of the same teams that the Academy plays, so it is hard to evaluate how the teams should do against each other. Watching some of their quarter final win over Taos, it was clear that they have a very different style and feel than the Academy. Santa Teresa will play six defenders in front of their talented keeper and count on a group of fast, technical strikers to counter attack right through the middle. The system works as they had scored 48 goals since allowing their last goal back in September.

The Academy was convinced that they could possess the ball and control the pace against Santa Teresa. The game started with both teams trying to feel out the style and play of the other. The Academy started with a bright attack when two dangerous crosses from Kenny Levandoski ’19 went unanswered at the back post. The Santa Teresa attack went through one player who was the target on goal kicks and punts. Aaron Hill ’19 earned an early yellow card while jockeying for position with this striker. The rest of the half unfolded as predicted. The Academy held possession, was on the attack, and had several chances to put a good shot on net but the Santa Teresa defense was a tough riddle to solve. In the moments when Santa Teresa won the ball, they were quick to counter attack—earning several free kicks down near the goal—but they had fewer chances. Yannick Schlenzig ’19 made two strong saves in the first half.

The Academy boys had a tough week of practice last week, with lots of running at the end of each evening. In the second half, this fitness showed up as the Santa Teresa players were slower to the ball and the Academy attacked in wave after wave. The Academy had a second advantage in several substitutes who could come on and raise the level of play. Tai Durell ’19 and Mateo Centenera ’20, in particular, have both been unavailable during much of the end of the regular season, and both came on to play impactful roles both in yesterday’s quarter final and today’s semi-final. Sixty-eight minutes in, the Academy earned one of its eleven corner kicks. Aaron latched onto the cross for what looked to be his trademark header goal, but the Santa Teresa keeper was there to parry it away. Luke Jenkusky ’20 jumped high for the rebound but was undercut and fell in a heap. Gabe Saiz ’21 was behind him and slammed the ball into the back of the net. Goal! Academy 1-0.

Spirits soared as the Academy had possibly figured out an answer to the Santa Teresa defense. They intercepted the resulting kick off and came right back down to attack again. But just three minutes later, Santa Teresa dispossessed the Academy and started their counter attack down the right wing, cutting back along the end line, and allowing their forward to finish uncontested in the face of the goal. It was their only shot of the second half. 1-1.

Throughout the rest of the second half and two, sudden-death, overtimes, Santa Teresa would defend as the Academy attacked. Their goalie parried away shots from Jackson Taylor ’19 and Oliver Kumar ’22, tipping them over the crossbar, before somehow saving a Lucas Jepsen ’19 volley smashed towards the side netting that would have ended the game. The Santa Teresa coach was yelling at his players in Spanish to hold up play. The keeper would wait to pick up the ball until confronted by an Academy striker, several Santa Teresa players would sit down because of possible injury. It was clear, Santa Teresa wanted to go to a shootout. Try as Albuquerque Academy might, Santa Teresa got their wish.

The Academy’s track record with shootouts is not good—with losses in the APS Metro finals and the Academy Tournament finals last year. Perhaps the last shootout victory was eight years ago in the first round of the state tournament. Yannick began as a goalie at the Academy five years ago, but he had a change of heart and spent the last two years playing in the field for junior varsity. Realizing the need for a keeper, Yannick spent the spring and summer working with a goalie coach in order to take on the position this season. A shootout to get to the state final was a real challenge.

The way a shootout works, each team gets five shots—alternating with the other. The teams line the sidelines with each player scheduled to shoot standing at midfield. When it comes time to shoot, each player must make the long, lonely walk to the penalty stripe. The crowds had swelled as this was the last game still being played.

Santa Teresa shot first. Right inside the post. Goal!

Tai strode out and buried his shot. 1-1.

Santa Teresa fired into the back of the net, catching the ball between the post and the net.

Mateo ran out and drove his shot home. 2-2.

Santa Teresa hit side netting for its third straight goal.

Aaron walked out, watched the keeper and struck it home—also pinning the ball between the net and the post. 3-3.

With each shot the tension grew, the crowd would hush and then roar. The fourth Santa Teresa keeper looked nervous. Trying to save a penalty kick is one of the hardest things to do on a soccer field. Often a goalie will make a guess and dive in one direction or the other. Yannick read his body language and decided not to dive, and the player kicked the ball right at him.

Neven Zapatka ’22 walked out and buried his shot. Academy 4-Santa Teresa 3.

Santa Teresa scored its fifth kick to tie the score 4-4.

Jackson walked out with the weight of the entire game riding on his back and drove the ball into the back of the net. Academy wins! The players rushed the field.

Tomorrow the Albuquerque Academy boys will play Los Alamos at 1:00 at the Bernalillo fields. The Academy beat Los Alamos 3-1 during the Academy Invitational early in the year. Los Alamos has improved a great deal, scoring over 100 goals on the season and beating Los Lunas in the other semi-final 7-0.